Despite a colossal offer from Saudi Arabia, Lionel Messi still makes a signing for FC Barcelona his priority during this transfer window. To the point of asking Riyadh for a favor.
At the end of his contract with Paris Saint-Germain, Lionel Messi said goodbye to the capital club on Saturday evening during the final match at the Parc des Princes against Clermont. Whistled by PSG supporters, the Argentinian international will not leave an imperishable memory in Paris despite a more than adequate second season. La Pulga is now looking to its future and several destinations are available to the six-time Ballon d’Or, from Barcelona to Inter Miami via Saudi Arabia.
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The Saudis, who have already grabbed Karim Benzema and Cristiano Ronaldo, dream of bringing back the former Barça captain and have offered him an XXL salary estimated at 500 million euros per year. Revenues that are enough to turn the head of the main interested party, who nevertheless makes a return to Barcelona his short-term priority according to GOAL. According to the specialized media, Lionel Messi has also asked Saudi Arabia to postpone his arrival to 2024 instead of 2023… under the same salary conditions.
Saudi Arabia want Messi this summer
A request for the moment refused by the Saudi leaders, who wish to bring in Lionel Messi this summer and who refuse to promise PSG No. 30 an equivalent salary in a year. In the very short term, the Argentinian really feels the desire to return home to Barcelona and evolve under the orders of Xavi. It is also the wish of his family, his wife having the concrete desire to return to Barcelona, just like one of his sons who would clearly have nostalgia for his life in Spain. Recent discussions between Jorge Messi and Joan Laporta in Catalonia prove the desire of the best player in history to return to his former club but in the Messi clan, the objective is to keep the offer from Saudi Arabia on the back burner in order to potentially accept it within a year or two.
A request for the moment refused by the Saudi state, eager to put pressure on the player in order to obtain his signature this summer. Because the goal of the Gulf country is to strike a blow in the world of football by paying all the best players on the market, and Lionel Messi is clearly one of them at the end of his contract with PSG. Having to wait a year before eventually recovering the Argentinian would therefore be seen as a small affront to the Saudi Kingdom.
