Barcelona president Joan Laporta believes that there is still a good chance that Lionel Messi would return to Barcelona because the Argentinean’s “chapter” in history at Camp Nou is not yet completed.
Messi is a record seven-time Ballon d’Or winner who moved to France as a free agent in the summer of 2021 and is currently listed on the Paris Saint-Germain squad
Although Barca could not offer Lionel Messi a contract extension last summer due to financial issues, Barca have worked hard to raise much-needed funds and a return to Catalunya for a legendary player in Messi’s figure might not be a bad business from next summer.
The legendary star player has only one year left in his contract with Paris Saint-Germain and an option to extend it for another year. But while speaking during an interview with ESPN, Joan Laporta was asked about a possible return of Lionel Messi to Barca and he said: “Messi has been everything. For Barca, he has possibly been the best player in history, the most efficient, only comparable to Johan Cruyff in the history of Barca.”
He added that he doesn’t believe that Lionel Messi’s chapter in the club is over and he believes that it’s the responsibility of the club to make sure that he comes back one day.
According to him, they would have the right moment to do it and it would be done in such a way that Barca’s relationship with Messi would not end the way it ended abruptly last summer.
🗣 “I think, I wish, that the Messi chapter is not over yet at Barça.”
— SPORTbible (@sportbible) July 25, 2022
🗣 “On a personal level and also as president, I think I owe him.”
Joan Laporta has given the biggest indication yet that a return could be on the cards for Lionel Messi… 😮 pic.twitter.com/Pvu5ADpNGi
However, a deal to bring him back to Barcelona won’t be easy because he’s still with the French Ligue 1 champions and he’s not getting any younger. But Joan Laporta is still confident that Barcelona will bring him back. “Do I feel like I owe him one? Yes”, the Barca president said.
As the president of Barcelona, he claimed that he did the right thing by letting him leave last summer but he still owe him a lot which includes bringing him back.
The seven times Ballon d’Or winner scored a total of 672 goals for Barca through 778 appearances, helping them to 10 La Liga titles and four Champions League titles, and also earned a lot of individual awards.
However, his first season at Paris Saint-Germain was way below the expectations of the whole world as he ended the season with just 11 goals. But Paris Saint-Germain’s president Nasser Al-Khelaifi has stated that Lionel Messi will be better next season. He added that the Argentina has settled very well at the club.
Note that Messi’s contract with Paris Saint-Germain places him as the second highest-paid footballer in the world.
