La Liga Chief Javier Tebas Opens Door To Lionel Messi’s FC Barcelona Return

La Liga president Javier Tebas has opened the door to Lionel Messi’s potential return to FC Barcelona and hopes the Catalans can pull the coup off.

Messi becomes a free agent on June 30 when his Paris Saint Germain contract expires, and Barca’s vice president Rafa Yuste has already confirmed that talks are underway with the player’s camp to try and see him don Blaugrana again.

As Barca struggle with debts and need to shave €200 million ($218 million) from the wage bill, however, as publicly warned by Tebas, the operation is complicated.

Speaking from a La Liga Extraordinary Assembly on Wednesday, though, Tebas opened the door to Messi’s potential comeback if his counterpart Joan Laporta can get the house in order and make the numbers work.

“Today they can not register Messi, but hopefully they manage it,” Tebas began, when broached on the subject. “There is plenty of time left.

“We are waiting for a viability plan, they can sell players, [but] today it is difficult. Hopefully, as a league, Barca will make the necessary moves for Messi to come, but we will not change any rules so that they can sign Messi. That is what we expect. I would like Messi to play in this competition,” Tebas concluded.

Tebas’ remarks may debunk claims from transfer market expert Gerard Romero that Barca presented La Liga with a viability plan at the end of March, though it isn’t clear whether this might have already been done and Tebas was merely suggesting that the Spanish top flight is waiting for it to be satisfactorily improved.

While Messi’s return would boost revenue for Barcelona as a club and city in merchandising, ticketing and tourism, it would also be great for Tebas and a league which has failed to boast a superstar of the seven-time Ballon d’Or winner’s magnitude in the last few years while Cristiano Ronaldo also fled Real Madrid for Juventus in 2018.

Messi playing his football at Camp Nou is beneficial for everyone, but it was Tebas refusing to bend and make concessions on salary limits in 2019 that resulted in Barca failing to offer Messi a new contract in the summer of that year.

If Barca can raise the necessary funds this time, Messi is likely to return for two seasons on a fresh contract that comes with an optional, extra season.