Lionel Messi's Return to Barcelona Looks Highly Unlikely, Says President Joan Laporta
Barcelona president Joan Laporta has stated that it is "unrealistic" for record goalscorer Lionel Messi to return to the club. The 37-year-old forward made a surprise visit to the Nou Camp last week, saying he wants to come back and have one final goodbye as a player.
Messi left Barcelona in 2021 for Paris St-Germain, but he has since signed a new contract with Inter Miami that runs until 2028. The eight-time Ballon d'Or winner expressed his desire to return to the club where he scored an incredible 672 goals in 778 games, winning 10 La Liga titles and the Champions League four times.
However, Laporta believes that Messi's departure from Barcelona did not end on good terms, as his contract was not extended amidst financial issues at the club. Nevertheless, the president has hinted at staging a tribute match once the Nou Camp reopens after renovation.
"It would be right that he has the best tribute in the world, and it would be wonderful to have it here, in front of 105,000 fans," Laporta said. The idea of a farewell match is seen as a fitting gesture to celebrate Messi's illustrious career with Barcelona. Despite Laporta's comments, there remains no concrete evidence that Messi will make a comeback to the club.
It appears that Laporta has dismissed the possibility of Messi returning to Barcelona, citing the fact that it would be "unrealistic". However, the prospect of a farewell match is still an exciting one for fans, who would love to see their legendary player receive a special send-off.
Barcelona president Joan Laporta has stated that it is "unrealistic" for record goalscorer Lionel Messi to return to the club. The 37-year-old forward made a surprise visit to the Nou Camp last week, saying he wants to come back and have one final goodbye as a player.
Messi left Barcelona in 2021 for Paris St-Germain, but he has since signed a new contract with Inter Miami that runs until 2028. The eight-time Ballon d'Or winner expressed his desire to return to the club where he scored an incredible 672 goals in 778 games, winning 10 La Liga titles and the Champions League four times.
However, Laporta believes that Messi's departure from Barcelona did not end on good terms, as his contract was not extended amidst financial issues at the club. Nevertheless, the president has hinted at staging a tribute match once the Nou Camp reopens after renovation.
"It would be right that he has the best tribute in the world, and it would be wonderful to have it here, in front of 105,000 fans," Laporta said. The idea of a farewell match is seen as a fitting gesture to celebrate Messi's illustrious career with Barcelona. Despite Laporta's comments, there remains no concrete evidence that Messi will make a comeback to the club.
It appears that Laporta has dismissed the possibility of Messi returning to Barcelona, citing the fact that it would be "unrealistic". However, the prospect of a farewell match is still an exciting one for fans, who would love to see their legendary player receive a special send-off.
...he left cuz of financial issues & now he's all like "oh i wanna go back" 
...laporta said it was on bad terms but still wants 2 give him a farewell match 
...it's kinda cool 2 see how much impact messi had on the club, 672 goals in 778 games is insane! 
...but if he really did want 2 come back, wouldn't he've made it clear by now? 
he's been gone from barca 4 so long & it's like he's trying to make amends w/ the fans by comin back just 2 say goodbye 
i get where president laporta is comin from tho, they didn't exactly part ways on good terms 
but u feel me, a farewell match wud b epic!!! even if it doesn't happen 
and hes still tryin 2 say goodbye wen he never left good terms in the first place 
but hey tribut match wud b sick jus imagine all dat energy at nou camp again 
. I get it, there were some issues between Messi and the club when he left, but wouldn't it be amazing to give him a proper send-off instead of dismissing the idea completely? 
Even if it's not gonna happen, I'm still keeping my fingers crossed 
. Whatever happens, fans like us can still live vicariously through our memes and GIFs of the old Messi magic 
!
maybe it'll be a win for barcelona again, who knows? 
105k fans cheering for him is def gonna bring a tear to his eye 
its also pretty weird that laporta said it was unrealistic but still might do a farewell match idk whats more likely imo 
... I mean, you'd think Messi would want to go back and have that final goodbye, right? 
. But yeah, a farewell match would be something else - can you imagine 105,000 people screaming his name? 
I feel for the fans tho, a farewell match would be epic! 
Messi is like, a legend at Barca, won so much stuff & scored loads of goals, they gotta give him some respect 
️ he deserves a farewell match for sure! maybe the club can organize it and pay tribute to his amazing career 
, after all, it would be awesome to see him walk out of the stadium one last time surrounded by 105k fans 
and a tribute match to boot, wow what an honor for the club to give him that kind of sendoff 
. BUT 
i think its still possibl tho, u never no 
. messi deserves da best farewell, btw 
. But a tribute match? That actually sounds pretty cool! Can you imagine seeing him walk out onto the Nou Camp pitch one last time, surrounded by all those fans 
. Wouldn't that just be another PR stunt for the club? 
Messi's contract situation is clear and he's not leaving Inter Miami anytime soon