Lionel Messi began to cry before he said the first word. His wife Antonella, who was sitting in the front row of the FC Barcelona auditorium with their three sons, immediately handed the Argentine a handkerchief. “In the past few days I’ve been thinking a lot about what I can actually say. The truth is, I can’t think of anything,” said Messi. “This is the club I love and this is not the moment I was expecting.”
Millions of fans around the world followed these words on the Internet. When Messi finished his speech, his former teammates, who had come to see the club’s greatest farewell, stood up and applauded. Also on their faces was the sadness about the ultimately completely surprising end of the unique relationship between FC Barcelona and Messi.
Lionel Messi cries at the press conference.
(Photo: AFP)
His blood had frozen, said Messi about the failure of the new contract with his heart club, to which he had come in 2000 as a 13-year-old. Messi did not want to answer specifically where it will go now. “We talk about a lot of things,” said the six-time world footballer. “So far I have not made any agreements. Many clubs are interested. But of course we talk to each other.”
The 34-year-old is associated with the French top club Paris Saint-Germain, the negotiations are well advanced according to media reports. Noisy The team Messi should possibly do the medical check at PSG on Sunday, but no later than this Monday. “A new story will begin and it will be the most difficult chapter of my career,” said Messi, who was heavily touched and touched – and repeatedly emphasized his emotional connection to the club that provided hormone treatment for the 13-year-old “Flea” at the time Stunted growth had taken over from Rosaria in Argentina.
“It’s so difficult for me. I’ve been here my whole life, I’m not ready for it,” said Messi. His family, with whom he had vacationed in Florida and Ibiza before leaving Barcelona and after his triumphant first title with the Argentine national team, was completely convinced to stay in Barcelona.
He offered to forego half of his salary. That didn’t help either. A new contract is said to have not come about due to the league’s financial restrictions. The league sets the upper limits on the total amount allowed for club salaries. The upper limit results from the difference between income and expenses – with Messi, salary expenses would have been 110 percent of income, said at least Barca President Joan Laporta. Without Messi, it’s 95 percent – but the target is 70 percent. FC Barcelona has also accumulated more than a billion euros in debt.
“Last year, with all the madness, I knew exactly what I was going to say, this year it’s different,” said Messi, who was determined to leave the club in the summer of 2019. At that time the situation was completely different, Messi had not met the club management at the time. But now it is difficult not to hear the fans “screaming my name”, stressed Messi, whose arrival at the press conference was accompanied by hundreds of supporters. Policemen had to keep an alley leading to the main gate clear.
If he could have imagined saying goodbye, it would have been in a full stadium, said Messi, which was not possible in Corona times. The press conference ended after just under 40 minutes. Messi smiled briefly at his family, his wife and his three “Catalan-Argentine boys”. Because he took his former teammates in his arms before he had to say goodbye to what he had achieved during his time at FC Barcelona: From the trophies lined up for 35 titles.
Should he really switch to PSG, the next successes should not be long in coming. “I want to win the Champions League again,” he said: “I want to win as many titles as possible.” It would be a realistic plan – a world-class team is playing together in Paris anyway. Neymar, the courted Kylian Mbappé, Italy’s European champion goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma, colleague Marco Verratti, ex-Real icon Sergio Ramos. In addition, an excellent Argentine parliamentary group with Angel di Maria, Leandro Paredes, Mauro Icardi – and the Argentine trainer Mauricio Pochettino.
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