“I was lucky that God took me to that place and made me spend my entire life in that wonderful club. A special club. “It’s a source of pride,” Leo Messi told the commissioner of the club’s 125th anniversary, David Carabén, when he went to interview him in Miami for the last program of the series. The nou clam from TV3, broadcast this Thursday night. It has its reasons. “I came to Barça when I was 13 years old. I have lived more in La Masia than in Argentina. “La Masia shaped me as a player and as a person,” says the nostalgic and grateful Argentine star.
There were 21 years of history defending the Blaugrana shirt, going through all the club’s lower categories. Of all of them, the official debut on October 16, 2004 in Montjuïc against Espanyol at home stands out. Messi replaced Deco. “I also prefer the year of the sextet in 2009. For what we achieved and for how. It was about going out and enjoying,” says Messi, who declares his love for the club above personalisms and who explains to Carabén that what makes him most proud is that “it is represented with a model that we like.” He also adds that “I really miss the club, the city, the people, the love, and I hope we continue to do well.” Speak in present tense. Because, even though he is not there, he feels like a participant in that model. And because he wants to return to what he considers his city. “My wife, my children and I miss Barcelona. The plan is to return.”
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I tell the culés that it is a pride to have been part of the history of this club.”
It is told by a Messi who will not be at the 125th anniversary gala today. Mainly because his relationship with President Laporta, whom he voted for in the last elections, is non-existent. Messi believed that with Laporta he could extend his bond with Barça. The contract ended on June 30, 2021. For about three months, his legal team along with his father and representative, Jorge Messi, worked with the then general director of Barça, Ferran Reverter, to renew it until 2026.
Messi, aware of the club’s complicated economic situation, agreed to cut his salary by half. Everything was ready for the signing. But two days before everything went wrong. On August 5, 2021, through tears, Messi headed to Paris. Barcelona’s legal representatives explained to him that there was no salary margin. Some arguments (and apologies) that never convinced him. Once outside of Barça, his agents went to the capital of France to study the offer from PSG. Al Jelaifi put a lot of pressure. I wanted it all and fast. In 24 hours. But the Rosario’s legal representatives set their conditions. It took them four days to negotiate a contract, managing, among other things, to preserve the player’s image rights.
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“I really miss the club, the city, the people, the love, and I hope we continue to do well”
Two years later, Messi did not want to continue in France. He called the then coach Xavi Hernández telling him that he would like to return. At the same time, Jorge Messi began talks with Laporta. There was an agreement in principle for two years without a termination clause, a reduced salary and with the freedom that Messi could leave whenever he wanted.
There was also a waiting deadline that the Argentine imposed on himself. In August, a month before the closing of the LaLiga transfer market, I had to have a destination and a field in which to train. Laporta couldn’t offer it and he didn’t know if he could at the end of August. So he accepted the proposal from Inter Miami, where he remains focused on his Barça.
“Barça is a link. It is a different club that generates a feeling of belonging”
He is not the only one who is waiting. So are other former players like Gerard Piqué, who in the same Carabén program says that for him “Barça is the connection I have with my father. And the one I have with my children, even though they live in Miami. If this were owned by an outsider, I would look at the numbers and throw out the sections. But it is not possible for the culés. And it is explained by a feeling of belonging that never changes,” he concludes.
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