Barcelona manager Xavi Hernandez has said Lionel Messi getting back to the team is not possible right now, but he has not completely shut the door on bringing him back in the future.
In a recent interview with ESPN, Barca president Joan Laporta also said he thinks of it as his obligation to guarantee Messi has a more lovely ending at Camp Nou following his exit the previous summer.
In any case, Xavi has made light of the possibilities of re-signing Messi from Paris Saint-Germain, who he joined on a two-year contract the previous summer on the grounds that Barca couldn’t stand to renew his deal.
“It doesn’t make sense to speak about Messi. He is the best player in the world and the best ever. The president has already said that he hopes Messi’s story has not finished with Barcelona. We will see in the future, but it’s not the moment to speak about Leo, it’s the moment to talk about the exciting players we have here,” Xavi said.
The post-Messi time has wrenched up a stuff at Barcelona this mid year with the signings of aggressors Robert Lewandowski and Raphinha. They follow the January appearances of Ferran Torres and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.
Messi will be 36 when his agreement ends with PSG in 2023, however reports keep on connecting him with a Barca return. However, Diario Sport detailed that Xavi had requested that the president tries to sign him on a free transfer the next summer.
Messi’s takeoff from the Catalan club left a harsh taste. He was ready to accept a lower salary to stay, however Barca were as yet incapable to accommodate his wages inside their LaLiga-forced spending limit. According to Laporta, Messi was everything.
“To Barca, he’s been possibly [the club’s] greatest player, the most efficient. To me, he’s only comparable to Johan Cruyff. But it had to happen one day. We had to make a decision as a consequence of what we inherited.
“I would hope that the Messi chapter isn’t over. I think it’s our responsibility to try to … find a moment to fix that chapter, which is still open and hasn’t closed, so it turns out as it should have, and that it has a more beautiful ending.
“As president of Barca, I did what I had to do. But also, as president of Barca, and on a personal level, I think I owe him.”
Laporta has recently spoken about his craving to see Messi back at Barca, where he won the Ballon d’Or on six events, as well as holding the club’s records for goals (672) and appearances (778).
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