Sports icon Lionel Messi has informed FC Barcelona that he wishes to leave the team this summer.
What We Know:
- Messi has spent his entire soccer career with Barcelona and is still under contract until June 2021. He recently re-upped his deal in 2017 and the contract has clauses in place in the event he ever wished to leave the club. Messi believes that the contract allows him to leave Barcelona for free, but the club maintains that he had to inform them of his intent before June. Otherwise, his new team would have to pay a €700 million fee. Messi’s legal team is disputing that the pandemic and extension of the season should alter the clause.
- Messi has his eyes set on Manchester City, which is managed by his former coach Pep Guardiola. Manchester City possibly has the resources to acquire Messi without breaking financial fair play rules, which ensure teams don’t spend more than they earn. It is reported that Messi and Manchester City are already in talks and that a potential deal could include an MLS clause. According to ESPN, the clause would allow Messi to join the team’s sister club New York City FC in the MLS after three seasons in Manchester.
- Barcelona got beat down in the Champions League semifinals last week, losing 8-2 to Bayern Munich. Barcelona’s humiliating loss marks the first season that they haven’t won a trophy since 2008.
- The club is intent on keeping Messi, with sporting director Ramon Planes saying “We only have enormous respect for Leo Messi. Barca and Leo are like a marraige, where both have given so much to each other, and have brought so much joy to the fans . . . We are putting every effort into esuring that the relationship between Barca and Messi will continue. We are working internally to convince Leo.”
- The 33-year-old superstar from Argentina joined FC Barcelona’s youth team in 2001 and made his senior debut in 2004. He is a six-time Ballon d’Or winner and holds several records in La Liga and across Europe. Messi is one of the most recognizable athletes in the world and is generally considered the best soccer player alive and one of the greatest of all time.
Rumors about Messi wanting to leave Barcelona have been around for years. His frustration with the team’s leadership seems to have reached its limit and this is the first time that he has formally requested to part ways with the team.
