Lionel Messi to leave Barcelona this summer

FC Barcelona have announced that Lionel Messi will leave the club this summer due to financial constraints

Barcelona football club have stated officially that Lionel Messi will not continue at the La Liga side due to financial challenges. (Photo credit: Marca)

In a sensational U-Turn, Barcelona has released an official statement that their talismanic forward Lionel Messi will not continue at the club after a La Liga rule worked against his registration.

Quite anticlimactic to a relationship that won everything there is to win in football, FC Barcelona would lick their wounds in a very turbulent wind as they failed to cash in on him in a mega transfer fee had they sanctioned his move when he wanted it…

Messi has spent his entire career at Barcelona, rising through the ranks of the club's academy before making his senior debut in 2003 and scoring 672 goals in 778 appearances.

LATEST NEWS | Leo #Messi will not continue with FC Barcelona
— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) August 5, 2021

Official FC Barcelona statement

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 Spanish LaLiga regulations on player registration.

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 aggrandisement of the club and wishes him all the very best for the future in his personal and professional life.