Lionel Messi, one of the best footballers in history, confirmed on Sunday that he is leaving FC Barcelona, where he has spent his entire career.
Failing to hold back tears at a press conference in Barcelona, the Argentina-born superstar said he had given everything for the club, which has been forced to let him go after his contract elapsed and Spain’s La Liga told it to comply with regulations on salary limits. “My blood ran cold,” he said of the moment he discovered that he would be leaving. “I didn’t want to leave this club.”
The Argentina International, 34, who became a free agent since July 1 after his contract at Camp Nou expired, had verbally agreed on a new deal on reduced wages only for the Catalan club to pull the plug.
According to Sky Sports, the French giants have offered Messi an initial two-year deal, thought to be worth £25m a year after tax, and the six-time Ballon d’Or winner and his representatives are now reviewing and considering it carefully.
Messi also has two other potential options after leaving Barcelona but PSG remain the favourites to sign him. Barcelona announced Messi would not continue at the club after they were unable to fulfill a new contract that had been agreed with the player due to “financial and structural obstacles”.
The Argentina international has spoken directly with PSG head coach Mauricio Pochettino this week about moving to the French capital. Asked if PSG will be his next move at his farewell news conference on Sunday, Messi said:
“That is one possibility, to reach those heights.
“I’ve got nothing confirmed with anybody. I had a lot of calls, a lot of interested clubs. At the moment, nothing is closed, but we are talking about a lot of things.”