Lionel Messi

Lionel Messi to decide future next week, knows Barcelona wants him back

Published Jun. 2, 2023 2:35 p.m. ET

Lionel Messi is nearing a decision on where he will play next, while the club he starred with for most of his career continues to signal that it wants him back.

According to Barcelona head coach Xavier Hernández, Messi will decide his future next week after his final game with current club Paris Saint-Germain. Barcelona's leaders have publicly signaled in recent weeks that they want to bring Messi back, with Xavi — who starred alongside Messi for several years during their respective playing careers at the club — at the forefront of that public recruitment.

Messi spent 21 years with Barcelona after signing with the club's academy as a teenager in 2000, eventually establishing himself as one of the greatest soccer players of all time — and winning every major trophy he could during his senior career with the club — until a tearful exit against his will in 2021 after Barcelona's financial issues prevented them from paying his wages.

Messi then finally achieved his longtime goal of winning major international soccer trophies with Argentina by leading his native country to the Copa América title in 2021 and FIFA Men's World Cup title in 2022.

Barcelona, meanwhile, experienced a resurgence of their own this past season after bringing Xavi back as manager, winning their first La Liga title since 2019 behind a mix of rising young stars and key veteran signings.

Despite that success, however, Xavi has publicly insisted several times that Messi, who turns 36 this month, would not only fit the current Barcelona team, but also elevate it.

Can Inter Miami, Barcelona sway Lionel Messi away from Saudi Arabia?

Messi is also reportedly entertaining offers from at least one team in the Saudi Pro League, where Cristiano Ronaldo currently plays with fellow former Real Madrid star Karim Benzema reportedly set to join him there, as well as Inter Miami of the MLS.

According to one report, Inter Miami and Barcelona are working together on a deal that would see the American club loan Messi to Barcelona for the first 18 months of his contract.

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