Lionel Messi has been suspended by Paris Saint Germain, which could push him close to a return to FC … [+]
Paris Saint Germain have suspended Lionel Messi for visiting Saudi Arabia and have decided to cancel his contract renewal according to L’Equipe, which could push him closer to a return to boyhood outfit FC Barcelona.
Messi made the trip to the Kingdom, for whom he is a tourism ambassador, after the Ligue 1 leaders were defeated 1-0 by Lorient on Sunday.
On Tuesday, however, he was handed a two-week ban which means he cannot train or play for the club he joined in 2021 from Barca after the Catalans failed to navigate Financial Fair Play limits and offer him a new contract.
Messi asked for permission to travel to Saudi Arabia and was told this was fine by his main employers according to ESPN‘s Martin Arevalo. When the World Cup winner was already in the air heading to the Middle East, however, PSG changed their mind and called a training session which Messi obviously couldn’t attend.
BBC Sport reports that Messi “asked permission to make the journey to carry out commercial work but was refused”.
In any event, it appears that the relationship between Messi and the French capital club has completely broken down, with L’Equipe reporting that the Qatari-backed giants have decided to pull the plug on his potential contract renewal.
The two-year contract that Messi signed when joining from Barca, which came with an optional additional season, expires on June 30.
Last month, Blagurana vice president Rafa Yuste revealed that talks regarding a potential return had already begun with the Messi camp led by father and agent Jorge.
Continued trouble at the Parc des Princes presumably pushes Messi closer to donning his iconic number ’10’ shirt at the club he joined as a 13-year-old, but debt-ridden Barca are having problems convincing La Liga that they can make the numbers work.
Further complicating matters is that sporting director Mateu Alemany will leave Barca on the day Messi also becomes a free man, with Relevo reporting that the subject was a thorny issue between Alemany and president Joan Laporta.
As detailed in a club statement, however, Alemany will continue to help Barca until the transfer window closes in September while possibly also working for Aston Villa if reports from Fabrizio Romano explaining he will accept an offer to join the Premier
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Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/tomsanderson/2023/05/03/paris-saint-germain-suspend-lionel-messi-reportedly-cancel-contract-renewal-to-ease-fc-barcelona-return/