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Lionel Messi is, without a doubt, one of the best football players ever to set foot on the turf. His name was, for almost two decades, synonymous with Barcelona, the Catalan football club that was considered one of the best in the world - but certainly one of the wealthiest. The Argentine football legend spent all his professional career with Barcelona - the odds of him ever leaving Camp Nou were close to none. Or so we thought until his contract expired this summer.
20 years
Surprising as it may sound, Messi was brought to Barcelona by a health issue. At the age of ten, while playing with the Rosario-based football club Newell's Old Boys, he was diagnosed with a growth hormone problem - and the treatment would’ve cost his family $1000 a month. They couldn’t afford it - and the club was also unable to help out due to the precarious economy of the country. As the Messi family had relatives in Barcelona, they arranged for tryouts with the team - the club’s manager at the time was so excited when he saw the brilliant young player on the turf that he immediately gave him a contract. On a paper napkin, but still.
Trouble in paradise
In recent years, Messi and Barcelona had a series of issues - so much so that the player was ready to leave the club last summer. Due to a series of legal discussions about certain clauses of his contract, this was impossible. This year, things seemed to change for both the club and the player: Barca’s president Messi had so many issues with was replaced, and most disputes seemed to be resolved. And then… the two parties seemingly failed to reach an agreement in time, so the player’s contract quietly expired at the end of June.
The Messi saga
That’s when a long period of speculation and excitement began. Everyone was speculating on where the player would continue - some said he will stay at Camp Nou, others predicted he’ll end up at any number of high-profile football clubs, including Liverpool and Paris Saint Germain. And for a while, it seemed that he’ll stay put - that until the club suddenly announced that he’ll be leaving.
A PR Stunt or a truly hard spot for Barca?
Why would people think that Messi’s ordeal was a PR stunt? Well, because the announcement of his departure was made so close to the beginning of the La Liga season - and the announcement put all the blame on the regulations of La Liga, the Spanish football league that strictly limits the amount a club can spend on wages in a year - thus escaping fan backlash for the departure of the club’s most popular player.
But the reason for Messi’s departure might indeed be the sensitive situation Barcelona is in. Last year, the club lost a record amount, adding to its already considerable debt. This year, according to La Liga rules, the club had to reduce its salary fund by at least a third, putting the club in a difficult situation ahead of the summer transfer window. Thus, it seems, the club simply couldn’t afford to maintain its current player base and afford even Messi’s reduced salary going forward - so the two parties had to part ways in the end.