Lionel Messi Will Stay At Paris Saint Germain Next Season And Not Return To FC Barcelona

Lionel Messi will stay at Paris Saint Germain next season and not return to FC Barcelona, according to reports from Catalonia.

Barca’s all-time appearances leader left the club last summer in a free transfer after the Catalans failed to navigate a strict La Liga salary cap while mired in debts circling $1.5bn.

Messi joined Ligue 1 giants PSG on a two-year deal, but there were rumors that he could look to end his tenure in the French capital prematurely after suffering mixed fortunes in his maiden term.

While Mauricio Pochettino’s men are leading France’s top flight by 15 points with six games to spare, meaning they will retain the title ceded to Lille last season, PSG yet again crashed out of Europe by way of an embarrassing comeback defeat.

This time it was Real Madrid that adminstered the killer blow in the Champions League, with Les Bleus striker Karim Benzema firing a sensational hat trick in the last 16 second leg that canceled out two Kylian Mbappe goals to see the 13-time winners advance to the quarter-finals.

There Madrid beat Chelsea, to set up a semi-final meeting with Manchester City next week. But Messi and his close friend Neymar were booed by the Parc des Princes faithful in the next home match after the Madrid loss, and it was around this time rumors began to circle that the seven-time Ballon d’Or winner had instructed his father and agent Jorge to contact the Barca board and sound out a potential return to Camp Nou.

Some five weeks later, however, Mundo Deportivo in Catalonia report that Messi will stay at PSG and honor his contract.

According to the daily newspaper and their sources, Messi has been surprised by the buzz surrounding his future because he has never considered leaving Paris early.

“He has signed until June 2023 and the agreement is sacred,” MD add.

Turning 35 in that month this year, Messi will be 36 by the time his current deal ends. This means that his next move is likely to be stateside to Inter Miami or back home to his boyhood club Newell’s Old Boys in Argentina.

If Messi does ever represent FC Barcelona again, it will almost certainly be when he has hung his boots up and acts as a director of football or in a similar capacity in a different role.