FC Barcelona want their greatest ever player Lionel Messi to return to the club for life when he retires, according to SPORTS. The Argentine began the week winning a record eighth Ballon d'Or in Paris, recognized by a France Football-appointed panel as the planet's best footballer after captaining his country to a third World Cup title in Qatar last December. After the ceremony, he took to Instagram to accuse Barca journalist Gerard Romero of "lying once more."
The transfer market expert claimed Messi had spoken to Blaugrana's president Joan Laporta at the Theatre du Chatelet to discuss a tribute match at the Camp Nou. On Wednesday, SPORT also confirmed that at no point did Laporta speak to Messi on the issue, which is expected to see progress in terms of planning from 2024 onwards. This is when the Catalans and the 36-year-old's entourage will touch base on the exhibition fixture, where Messi could play a half for the club of his life, FC Barcelona, and the other portion of the game for his current employers Inter Miami.
Messi will be 37 by the time his terms expire with the Jorge Mas and David Beckham owned franchise. But irrespective of whether he opts to continue in the Americas, or call it a day 12 months out from the 2026 World Cup, SPORT reports that Barca want to talk about a "future collaboration" beyond the pitch. Barca took note of how affectionately Messi spoke of them on stage this week with the Ballon d'Or in hand, and believe that this opened the door to discussing his plans post-retirement. The idea, according to SPORTS, is to reach a "lifelong agreement" with Messi so that he can work at the club in his post-playing days. According to El Chiringuito, it is in this capacity, as sporting director, that the Prodigal Son will come "home" and operate behind the scenes at Camp Nou.
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