Lionel Messi is to part ways with Barcelona, the Spanish giants have confirmed. Both player and club had agreed to a five year contract extension but La Liga’s salary cap rules mean that agreement cannot be met. Messi’s old contract expired earlier this summer.
“Despite FC Barcelona and Lionel Messi having reached an agreement and the clear intention of both parties to sign a new contract today, this cannot happen because of financial and structural obstacles (Spanish Liga regulations),” Barcelona said in a statement.
“As a result of this situation, Messi shall not be staying on at FC Barcelona. Both parties deeply regret that the wishes of the player and the club will ultimately not be fulfilled.
“FC Barcelona wholeheartedly expresses its gratitude to the player for his contribution to the aggrandizement of the club and wishes him all the very best for the future in his personal and professional life.”
Paris Saint-Germain have made direct contact to Messi’s camp, according to Fabrizio Romano.
This is the latest chapter in a saga that began a year ago when Messi first revealed he wanted to leave the only club he’d ever played for. Although he ultimately relented on taking Barcelona to court in order to get out of the last year of his contract, he contractual situation was never fully settled. Although it seemed as though the election of Joan Laporta to return to Barcelona as President made it likely Messi would stay, the details were never completely ironed out and now, it seems, La Liga rules continue to stand in the way.