Messi worries Barça

Lionel Messi has revealed he wants to leave Barcelona...to return to Argentina. But Cules do not have to fear as Messi stated he didn't plan on moving until much later in his career.

The Argetinian superstar told Spanish newspaper Ole that he would like to play in his homeland again before he retires. He also promised that he would never move to another European club and will stay with Barcelona for the foreseeable future.

Messi was quoted as saying "In Europe I want to play at Barcelona. I would stay here forever, the longer the better because I feel very comfortable and loved." The 24 year old was adamant when it came to returning to his native country. "...before I retire I want to play in my country, I am absolutely certain that I want to play in Argentina. It is a dream and I am going to make it come true."

He didn't specify which club he would like to return to, so undoubtly a number of clubs will be interested in signing the three time Ballon d'Or winner. Even towards the end of his career, he would surely still be an asset to any side.

The damage caused to Barcelona from a move such as this is up for debate though. If Barça are still as dependant on him as they are now when he decides to go, then it will be a huge loss for the Catalans. But if Barça's youth squad have kept up their record of creating world beaters then maybe a player even better then Messi will be among the ranks.

In the interview Messi went on to add that during the recent presentation in Zurich he became a little bit star struck after being handed the award from Brazil legend Ronaldo. "“I was overjoyed to meet him. I was transfixed watching his goals on the screen that was on the stage, amazing, he was an amazing forward and also a great guy, always with a smile on his face, it is an honour to receive the prize from him. Another dream come true, because as a kid I admired him, he was a brilliant goalscorer.”

Messi has been at Barcelona for nine years now after joining from Newell's Old Boys academy at the age of 13. Another nine years would see him reach 33, the current age of club captain Carles Puyol, and Barça fans will hope to still see him in that famous blue and red shirt.

Comments

Brazillian wonder-kid arriving at Barça?

Neymar's future has been uncertain for a long time now. Clubs from every top European league seem to be queuing up for his signature. But the speculation is drawing to a close and the fight for Neymar's signature has turned into a two horse race between the Spanish giants. This will all have to wait until 2014 as Neymar recently snubbed the transfer talk and extended his contract with current club Santos. That doesn't mean Real and Barça can't fight for the first chance to sign the 19 year old. It was recently reported that Barcelona have agreed a fee with Santos for first dibs at Neymar. But any deal that Barça would try to carve out will be met by competition from Real Madrid as well as a hefty price tag. Neymar is currently on £90,000 a week wages in an attempt to see off the European clubs but Barça will try to combat that by offering a deal worth €7 million euros a year. This would put him in the same wage bracket as World Cup winners David Villa and Xavi. Ne...

Messidependencia returns as Barcelona stutter in Bilbao

Usually the moments of game-changing magic are saved for Lionel Messi but in his absence, one man stood up to take centre stage. 38-year-old Aritz Aduriz had been on the pitch for little over a minute before he was bicycle-kicking his team into a shock win. In La Liga's opener, Barcelona looked tepid. Antoine Griezmann may have hoped it would be he would provide the magic but in the opening stages it was Iñaki Williams, albeit for the other team. For a manager already under fire, it was the worst possible start to the new campaign. Points dropped in the opening games used to be no major cause for concern. Chalk it up to pre-season not being quite right or players not being fully fit and relax in the warm comfort that you have 30+ games to rectify the mistake. Nowadays, with the relentless nature of modern football, a defeat is approaching terminal. Aside from Barcelona, every Champions League semi-finalist from last year won their opening game and their old foe Real Madri...

Madrid's meltdown gives Barça a route to the title

Real Madrid boss, José Mourinho, could be the unlikeliest source of Barcelona's hope in retaining their league title. Spanish newspaper Marca recently obtained access to a Real Madrid training session, more importantly a training session in which Mourinho and Sergio Ramos exchanged insults in a war of words. The newspaper ran the transcript of the argument not only between Mourinho and Ramos but also club captain Casillas. Heavy words were thrown between both parties and it all stemmed from the marking of Carles Puyol. Or the lack of marking in Mourinho's opinion. Ramos explained that he and Pepe made the decision to switch defensive duties because Gerard Piqué was looking the most dangerous so Ramos should mark him instead of Puyol, who Pepe will now pick up. Mourinho reacted angrily at this asking Ramos "So you're the manager as well now then?" This question caused Ramos to also react angrily explaining “Depending on the match situation, sometimes it’s neces...

A Barça Blog

Search This Blog