Lionel MessiTwo-week suspension by Paris Saint-Germain after unauthorized travel to Saudi Arabia has drawn a line in the sand between the 35-year-old and his club. Now it seems very difficult for the Argentine to stay in Paris beyond this summer.
After months of drift in negotiations, his contract is expected to simply expire at the end of June. It will mark a passive conclusion after two years in the French capital.
Messi signed a two-year contract with PSG in 2021 and included the option of a third year. In the midst of the uncertainty about whether he would renew, his camp alluded to waiting for more information on what PSG’s sports project will be like next season.
Now it seems that the sporting project has no place for Messi within it, and that conclusion has been abruptly brought forward by the events of this week.
So if not in Paris, Where will Messi play next season? Is a return to Barcelona, the club he served with such distinction until 2021, financially viable? The lucrative of Messi? ambassadorial role with the saudi tourism board suggest that it will follow Cristiano Ronaldo and play club football in the Middle East? What about a long-discussed move to intermiami and major league soccer?
Here is the state of the game the athletic one experts in Spain, France and the US right now…
This is undoubtedly the dream of the Barcelona president, Joan Laporta, and everything indicates that it seems to be a personal choice of Messi. However, there is still a long way to go until those feelings become reality.
In fact, it feels unwise to even speculate on the possible return of Lionel Messi given Barcelona’s financial difficulties. After all, the club has yet to register new contracts for gavi, Ronald Araujo, Alejandro Balde, Mark Alonso and Sergi Roberto low The leagueSalary rules of .
But, while Messi’s signing seems like an impossible puzzle at the Camp Nou right now, none of that will dissuade many in Barcelona from believing that a deal can eventually be struck.
La Liga is expected to require Barcelona to reduce its wage bill by around 200 million euros (£176 million; $221 million) for the 2023-24 season. At the moment, the culés are exceeding the limit that the Spanish league sets for them to spend on salaries. Like other clubs in similar situations, Barcelona needed to present a financial viability plan to establish the steps it will take to balance its accounts over the next two seasons.
Two weeks ago, Barcelona did exactly that. They also informed LaLiga how they will operate in the summer transfer window. There are no clear details about what this plan entails, but multiple sources in Barcelona, who have been granted anonymity to protect their jobs, have confirmed that LaLiga president Javier Tebas has been briefed on the intention of the plan. club trying to give up Messi. And Barcelona will not want to wait until the last days of the summer window to find out if they have their man.
However, how a club can reduce its salary bill by 200 million euros by signing one of the highest earning players in world football is another question.
The coaching staff, headed by coach Xavi, is committed to having a ‘last dance’ for Messi at the club. They feel the Argentine star will provide exactly what his team lacks, particularly making the difference in the final third, where the 20-year-old Pedro seems to have too much responsibility for the success of the team.
In the locker room, opinions are divided. Although a significant part of the current squad is excited about the possibility of being back in a team with Messi, there are also some sectors that are more reluctant to the prospect of a reunion.
Messi’s team, who have been asked for comment, admitted weeks ago that a return to Barcelona can only be conceivable from a romantic rather than a realistic perspective for now.
But then again, this is Barcelona. Anything can happen.
Pol Ballús and Laia Cervelló Herrero
Moving to Saudi Arabia?
The numbers are terrifying: Messi could earn up to 400 million euros (about $443 million) a year to develop his career in Saudi Arabia.
But when another year at PSG was still a possibility, playing in the Saudi Pro League, ranked as the 58 highest quality league in the world, according to sports intelligence agency Twenty First Group, he was not Messi’s most attractive option. He wanted to stay in Europe and continue performing at the highest level ahead of the next Copa América in the United States in 2024.
However, that could have changed now.
The lack of projects to choose from in Europe is the main reason why we are unlikely to see Messi in the Champions League again next season. With PSG ruled out as a potential option, only Barcelona are admitting a legitimate interest in him, and we’ve already covered just how uncertain that option is.
The sponsorship deal Saudi Arabia signed with Messi to promote international tourism doesn’t automatically mean he’ll want to play his club’s football there, of course, and he’s not the only player targeted by a league striving to make an impact. . After Ronaldo joined Al Nassr in January, the Saudi league identified players like Neymar Jr, Pepe and Lucas Modric as potential inputs to try to follow it.
Pol Ballus
Join Inter Miami?
With Messi’s time at PSG seemingly drawing to a close, David Beckham’s Inter Miami at least have one less competitor in their long-running quest for the seven-time Ballon d’Or winner.
In MLS circles, Messi’s addition to Miami one day has long been regarded as an open secret. The club, however, still hopes that ‘someday’ will be this summer.
Miami has been pushing for that result for a long time, with meetings continuing through the winter. Jorge and José Mas, the brothers who co-own Inter Miami with Beckham, led the negotiations and there have been numerous meetings. with Messi’s father, Jorge.
Messi has a home in Miami and regularly spends free time in South Florida. Miami also has roster space (or “designated player spot,” in MLS parlance) ready for Messi and could even make more room to add a player like Sergio Busquets.
MLS Commissioner Don Garber said the athletic in March, it will likely take a creative deal to make it happen, but that the league and intermiami are willing to be flexible in finding the right compensation package to land Messi.
The ball, in many ways, is in Messi’s court here.
Tom Bogert
Stay at PSG?
Messi’s stay in Paris is about to come to an end.
After his World Cup triumph with Argentina in December in Doha, the idea of him leaving a Qatari-owned club at PSG seemed far-fetched. An agreement to extend his stay in Paris seemed a natural conclusion. In France, PSG were unbeaten in the league and Messi was at the center of things, after a slow first season at his new club.
But since then, the mood has changed significantly. PSG’s performances have taken a nosedive, with nine losses this calendar year alone and elimination by Bayern Munich in the Champions League round of 16.
Messi was not individually to blame for this, but it was a symptom of poor squad formation that left the club ill-equipped to fight on all fronts. The club’s post-world malaise, in the context of Messi’s triumph, did not help.
For the player, this period of his career will have been painful and now he sees himself finished off by this sanction from the club. Fan sentiment had turned against him and his name has been hailed at the Parc des Princes before matches. Sentiments among supporters in Paris have centered on suggestions that he has not been as involved as he was during his time at Barcelona; a point only reinforced by the good form of the team since the turn of the year. The repeated rumors about a possible return to the Catalan club have only fueled that fire as well.
Now that it has become an example in Paris, it seems unlikely that relations can be rebuilt. For the player, staying in Paris no longer looks comfortable.
PSG wants to focus on building around kylian mbappe and take advantage of the wealth of talent that exists within the French game. It means the end of his emphasis on bling and big names (and a big salary bill), and that also means a willingness to part ways with Messi.
Peter Rutzler
(Top photo: ANNE-CHRISTINE POUJOULAT/AFP via Getty Images)
Discover more from PressNewsAgency
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.