With Lionel Messi left with just a month before his Paris Saint-Germain contract ends, a surprising new twist around his immediate future has reportedly emerged.
According to various reports, the seven-time Ballon d'Or winner is highly unlikely to stay at PSG after his relationship with the club and some of its supporters took a knock earlier in May.
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United States outfit Inter Miami, Saudi Arabian giants Al Hilal and his former team FC Barcelona are the potential suitors gunning for his signature, with the latter thought to be leading the race following their 2022/23 LaLiga triumph.
Barca have continued their efforts to bring their all-time leading goalscorer back to the Camp Nou, having reportedly asked their squad to accept pay cuts in the region of 15% to help ease their wage bill in order to meet LaLiga's financial fair play requirements.
As many as 10 stars are also said to be up for sale, with the club aiming to generate player sales that could help them not only fund the Messi deal but bring in more reinforcements as well.
However, it is now claimed that the 2022 FIFA World Cup winner's future may no longer be in Catalonia as recent reports suggest.
According to TNT Sports Brasil, the Blaugrana cannot afford to make any promises that they will sign Messi any time soon due to the fact that LaLiga have not approved the club's financial plan, a document outlining how they propose to cut costs over a three-year period in order to re-sign the South American.
It is stated that a fairy-tale homecoming is now essentially off the cards, with Messi not intending to wait for the Spanish top flight to approve Barca's plan given that there is no guarantee that it will be agreed to.
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Messi reportedly wants his future decided as soon as possible and is now said to be keen to engage with other interested parties as he looks to avoid being subjected to a similar situation that led to his shock departure from Barcelona in 2021.
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