Barcelona ‘FAIL in one final desperate bid to keep Lionel Messi’ from leaving for PSG… as ‘informal’ offer arrived ‘too late to convince him’ with an announcement in Paris expected TODAY
- Barcelona have reportedly failed in a final bid to keep hold of star Lionel Messi
- The Argentine was in tears at a press conference on Sunday saying his farewells
- He said he didn’t want to leave but Barcelona’s finances means he cannot stay
- A report by La Porteria suggests the Catalan side are assessing all their avenues
- There is a growing belief that PSG will confirm a deal for Messi on Tuesday
Barcelona have failed in a desperately late bid to keep hold of Lionel Messi, according to a new report.
The Argentine was in tears at a farewell press conference on Sunday in which he revealed he was leaving against his wishes after doing ‘all I can do’ to try and stay.
Barcelona’s ongoing financial crisis dictates that they have been priced out of a move to keep free agent Messi – although, according to La Porteria, that did not stop them making a desperate late offer to try and avoid a divorce with their greatest ever player.
Paris Saint-Germain have aggressively pursued Messi since it was confirmed he would be leaving Barcelona and a deal to take him to the French capital is expected to be confirmed today.
Lionel Messi was reportedly presented with an ‘informal’ late offer by Barcelona to stay
CEO Ferran Reverter was reportedly tasked with the negotiations in the final offer but came up short in reaching an agreement.
It was described as an ‘informal’ offer and having already said his goodbyes – and hinted at a switch to a European rival – there looks to be no going back.
South American outlet Olé claimed that the final offer from Barcelona ‘arrived too late’ and Messi, after 35 titles at the Nou Camp, is closing in on a mega move to Paris Saint-Germain.
Messi, who confirmed he had offered to take a 50 per cent pay cut to continue a period of service which brought 672 goals in 778 appearances, said on Sunday: ‘This is what (Joan) Laporta said right up until the last minute, and because of everything with the league, it suddenly couldn’t happen.
Messi looked devastated as he spoke to the media and his team-mates at the Nou Camp
‘There’s nothing more to tell. Anything else, I can’t say. What’s clear is that I did everything possible; the club, Laporta, they couldn’t do it because of LaLiga.
‘I’ve heard a lot of things said about me, that I didn’t want to continue, but on my behalf, we did everything we could because I wanted to stay.’
Messi was still in Barcelona on Monday, seen relaxing by his swimming pool, but that did not stop hundreds of excited PSG fans waiting outside the Parc des Princes and one of the city’s airports in order to catch the first glimpse of him.
It is proving to be a sad divorce with Barcelona, despite Messi being a free agent for closing in on two months now.
A lawyer working on behalf of the Spanish club’s loyal section of supporters has filed a complaint to the European Court of Appeals, stating the Parisians should be stopped in their pursuit of Messi based on financial data.
PSG fans gathered in great numbers outside their Parc des Princes stadium on Monday
In a document posted by Juan Branco, he confirmed the ‘socios’ are looking to stop the move
Juan Branco confirmed the complaint on Twitter on Sunday night by tweeting a statement that read: ‘In the name of the ‘socios’ of Barcelona, my firm has prepared a complaint with the European Commission and demands for provisional suspension before civil and administrative courts in France to prevent Paris-Saint Germain from signing Lionel Messi.
‘PSG’s ratios in terms of ‘Financial Fair Play’ are worse than those of FC Barcelona.
‘In 2019-2020, PSG’s salary-to-income ratio was 99%, while Barcelona’s was 54%. Meanwhile, the difference has increased.
‘It is inconceivable that the ‘Financial Fair Play’ serves to aggravate the drifts of football-business, the instrumentalization of football by sovereign powers, and the distortion of competitions.’
