Lionel Messi was always going to be a superstar. It was written in the stars, but he needed the right environment to make him flourish, and by a stroke of fortune, he found himself in Barcelona. The Catalan-based outfit with a football-obsessed fanbase who demand the absolute best from players that wear their colours knew the first time they saw Messi play that this was no mere player; this was a generational talent the gods of football had deemed fit to play for them, and he didn’t disappoint.
Barcelona and Messi are almost used interchangeably especially when you visit here. There is no player and club that define each other more than the pair and seeing Messi play for another club felt like a travesty. In the summer of 2021, the Argentine left Camp Nou after talks on a new deal fell through, and swapped Catalonia for Paris, donning the same red and blue, but this time, in the colours of PSG. The mercurial forward had joined the pair of Neymar and KylianMbappe as the club owners wanted to finally conquer Europe, despite spending billions in the pursuit of Europe’s holy grail.
The PSG project has not gone to plan, as the trio have failed to reach the quarterfinals, losing to eventual winners, Real Madrid last year, and falling to Bayern Munich this term in the same Round of 16. After a difficult first season in Paris, he has shone like a million stars this term, registering 18 goals and 17 assists in just 31 matches. His game peaked leading up to the World Cup, where he led Argentina to glory, and ended a career-long pursuit of the greatest trophy in football. There have been talks of Messi not renewing his contract at the Parc des Princes which ends this summer.
The 35-year-old has been linked with moves to Inter Miami owned by David Beckham, and even a move back home to Argentina with Newell’s Old Boys, a club Messi has always said he wants to play for before he retires. However, he should return to Barcelona, where he seems to have unfinished business, and get the proper send-forth that is befitting for a player of his status, who has given so much to the club. In 772 matches, he scored 672 times, and won 35 trophies, the most by a single player in the history of the club.
With Barcelona heading in the right direction under Messi’s former teammate, Xavi, it would make a lot of sense if Messi were to come back and signal the official start of what promises to be another great era for the club, with users of slots online set to benefit as well.
