Former FC Barcelona talisman, Lionel Messi has revealed that he and his wife, Antonela Roccuzzo have agreed to return to Barcelona after his professional football career.
Recall that Messi spent the best part of his football career at FC Barcelona. He joined the club in 2000 and developed his football skills at the club’s football academy for four years.
He gained promotion to the club’s senior team in 2004 and remained in the senior team for over 17 years before his relationship with the club expired on June 30, 2021.
The club attempted to extend his stay at the club but due to the financial crisis the club was going through, Barca could not offer him a new deal. Hence, in August 2021, he joined Paris Saint Germain on a free transfer.
Before now, many football enthusiasts thought Lionel Messi would not play for any other club apart from FC Barcelona. The 34-year-old Argentine football star spent over 21 years of his life in Barcelona.
Messi and his wife had been in Barcelona since 2008, nine years before they officially became husband and wife on 30 June 2017. They had all their three children – Thiago (born 2012), Mateo (born 2015), and Ciro (born 2018) in the city of Barcelona, Spain.
Hence, the best of his investments and that of his wife are in the city which means that the city is the footballer’s second home after Rosario in Argentina.
During an interview with Spanish outlet SPORT, Lionel Messi was asked whether he would play for FC Barcelona when his contract with PSG expires on June 30, 2023, the Argentina international said he doesn’t know what would happen in 2023 but he and his wife had concluded to return to Barcelona after he retired from the game.
Messi said: “I don’t know if that’ll happen when my PSG contract is up. What’s almost confirmed and certain is that we’ll return to Barcelona to live and our lives will be there.
“That’s what my wife and I want. I don’t know what’ll happen when my PSG contract ends, but we’ll go back to live in Barcelona.
“I’ve always said I’d love to be able to help the club do well in any way that I can be useful. I’d love to be a technical director at some point.
“I don’t know if that’ll be at Barcelona or if it might work out differently.
“If the option is there, I’d love to contribute again in any way that I can because it’s the club that I love and I’d love it to keep doing well, growing, and remain one of the best in the world.”
Lionel Messi is not happy with the comment of Barcelona president Joan Laporta
Two Months after Lionel Messi had left FC Barcelona for PSG, Barcelona president Joan Laporta said in October 2021 that he hoped Messi could play for Barca for free instead of leaving the club for PSG.
In reaction to Laporta’s comment, Lionel Messi described the comment as inappropriate, adding that no one asked him to play for Barcelona for free before he left in August 2021.
The record 6 times Ballon d’Or winner said: “Never at any moment did they ask me to play for free. They asked me to reduce my salary by 50 percent and I did it without any problem.
“We were willing to help the club more. My desire and that of my family was to stay in Barcelona.
“No one asked me to play for free, but at the same time, the president’s words were inappropriate. It hurt because I don’t think there was any need to say that.
“It’s like taking the ball from you and not accepting the responsibility or taking charge of things. That makes people think and generates doubts that I don’t think I deserve.”
#MessiConSPORT🗞
— Diario SPORT (@sport) November 1, 2021
⭐¿Qué relación tiene Messi con Neymar y Mbappé? ¿Cómo lo ha recibido el vestuario?
▶👇Leo contesta pic.twitter.com/qvkkmqRxnh
