A return of Lionel Messi to FC Barcelona is, according to trainer Xavi, “impossible”. President Joan Laporta had previously said that Messi, who left last year, will return to the Catalan club one day.
“We’ll see what the future brings, but this is not the time to talk about that,” said Xavi ahead of the pre-season friendly against Juventus in Dallas. ,,Leo’ has a contract with another club. We only talk about our own players.”
The Argentine superstar left Barcelona in tears last year, after a tenure of some twenty years. Due to major financial problems, Barcelona were unable to renew Messi’s expiring contract. The 35-year-old attacker moved to French top club Paris Saint-Germain, where he signed a contract until the summer of 2023. “Messi is the best footballer ever,” said Laporta last weekend. ,,His era at Barcelona isn’t over yet, this chapter isn’t over yet. It is our responsibility to keep the book open.”
With players like Lewandowski, we want to win titles again. That belongs to this club. That philosophy was introduced by Johan Cruijff and further developed by Louis van Gaal, Frank Rijkaard
Xavi’s selection is undergoing a metamorphosis this summer. Barcelona said goodbye to many players and attracted, among others, Robert Lewandowski, Raphinha, Andreas Christensen and Franck Kessié. The future of Dutch internationals Frenkie de Jong and Memphis Depay at Barcelona is uncertain. They can in principle leave.
“Although the club is not going through such a good period, we are still FC Barcelona,” said Xavi. “We try to make the best of it. With players like Lewandowski, we want to win titles again. That belongs to this club. That philosophy was introduced by Johan Cruijff and further developed by Louis van Gaal, Frank Rijkaard and later Pep Guardiola and Luis Enrique. My dream now is to bring Barcelona back to the top. I don’t want to surpass Johan, Pep or anyone else, I don’t have such an ego. I am a student of theirs and want to make a small contribution to make Barcelona shine again.”
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