La Liga

Paris Saint-Germain reportedly "feel a deal is close" with longtime Barcelona superstar Lionel Messi after initial conversations about a potential three-year contract.

ESPN's Julien Laurens reported Friday further negotiations between PSG and Messi's father Jorge, who also serves as the six-time Ballon d'Or winner's agent, are planned for no later than Monday.

Barcelona announced Thursday they wouldn't be able to re-sign Messi because of La Liga's "regulations on player registration," a sudden turn of events after it was reported in mid-July the sides reached an agreement on a new five-year deal to keep him at Camp Nou.

The 34-year-old Argentine heading to PSG could have a trickle-down effect.

His arrival would "increase the likelihood" Kylian Mbappe signs a new long-term contract with the Parisians before his current deal expires next summer and would bring an end to the club's pursuit of Manchester United midfielder Paul Pogba, per Laurens.

Messi would also reunite with Neymar after spending four seasons together as teammates with Barca from 2013 through 2017.

In February 2020, the Barcelona legend told Mundo Deportivo (via ESPN) he was hopeful the Brazilian forward would eventually return to the Spanish club.

"Neymar has always been a top-level player and different to the rest," Messi said. "He is unpredictable, he takes players on and he scores lots of goals. On a sporting level Neymar is one of the best in the world and I'd love for him to come back."

While the reunion never happened at Camp Nou, it sounds possible it will occur at the Parc des Princes.

Although there was little in the way of rumors about Messi leaving Barcelona following the reports about the five-year deal, PSG kept tabs throughout the process and have been in contact with Jorge Messi for "some time," per Laurens.

Since there are a limited number of clubs with the financial flexibility to add a player of Messi's caliber, PSG may not face a ton of competition despite the fact he'd help pretty much any attack in Europe.

Messi recorded 30 goals and nine assists across 35 La Liga appearances for Barca last season. He tallied 672 goals in all competitions across 17 years with the Blaugrana.

Paris Saint-German manager Mauricio Pochettino confirmed Friday that PSG is interested in signing former Barcelona star Lionel Messi, and reports suggest the two sides are nearing an agreement entering the weekend. 

According to ESPN's Julien Laurens, Pochettino said: "Of course [signing Messi] is a possibility. The club is working on it and if there is any information we will communicate it as soon as possible."

Laurens noted that sources said PSG reached out to Messi on Thursday after Barca announced it would be unable to re-sign him because of financial issues.

Moises Llorens and Sam Marsden of ESPN reported in July that Messi and Barcelona agreed to a new five-year contract after he became a free agent.

While both sides wanted to get a deal done, Barca didn't have the financial flexibility needed to make it happen, meaning the 34-year-old legend will play elsewhere next season for the first time in his professional career.

Messi has always played under the Barcelona umbrella, as he was part of Barcelona C and Barcelona B before getting called up to the first team in 2004.

The Argentina native is unquestionably one of the greatest players of all time with 672 goals and 305 assists in 778 matches across all competitions for Barca.

Messi also won 10 La Liga titles, seven Copa del Rey titles and four UEFA Champions League titles in addition to being a six-time winner of the FIFA Ballon d'Or as the world's best player.

Given his high-profile status, Laurens noted that PSG owner Tamim bin Hamad is "eager" to sign Messi. Bin Hamad has reportedly wanted either Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo on the team since purchasing PSG in 2011.

PSG's renewed interest in Messi comes as little surprise since it was reported last summer that PSG and Manchester City were among the top suitors for Messi after he informed Barcelona he no longer wanted to play for the club.

Messi and Barcelona ultimately worked things out, but he is once again on the market, and signing him would make sense for Paris Saint-Germain on multiple fronts.

Laurens reported that signing Messi would likely convince rising star Kylian Mbappe to re-sign with the club before he becomes a free agent next summer.

Also, on the heels of finishing second to Lille in the Ligue 1 standings last season, PSG could use a talent infusion.

With Messi in the fold, PSG would be favored to return to the top of Ligue 1, and they would be major threats to win their first Champions League title as well after finishing as runners-up in 2020.

Lionel Messi officially won't return to Barcelona, the club announced Thursday:

"Despite having reached an agreement between FC Barcelona and Leo Messi and with the clear intention of both parties to sign a new contract today, it cannot be formalized due to economic and structural obstacles (Spanish LaLiga regulations)," the club said in a statement.

The club also released a tribute video to its departing legend: 

Spanish newspaper Marca initially reported talks had broken off Thursday:

Catalan radio station RAC1 (h/t Collin Millar of the Mirror) later reported Messi is "more out of Barca than ever" and he "does not like the current squad." 

Messi was a free agent this offseason after his contract with Barcelona had expired, but the two sides had reportedly agreed to a five-year extension in July featuring a significant wage reduction for the player, per Sam Marsden and Moises Llorens of ESPN.

The deal was never signed, however, as Barcelona struggled to fit the contract within its wage limit for 2021-22.

La Liga received an injection of €2.7 billion Wednesday in a deal with CVC Capital Partners, 90 percent of which will go directly to the clubs.

It was expected the additional funds would indirectly help Barcelona with its high salaries, per Llorens and Marsden. However, the club has been unable to offload high-priced players like Antoine Griezmann.

The team also made several key additions in the offseason, including Sergio Aguero, Memphis Depay and Eric Garcia. While they may have been signed as free agents, each player's salary needs to be accounted for. 

Aguero and Messi have played together for Argentina and were both on the squad that won the Copa America this summer, earning Messi his first major international trophy.

Though Barcelona finished last year just third in La Liga, these additions were expected to help boost the club heading into 2021-22 and convince Messi to remain with the organization.

The 34-year-old will instead leave after 17 years with the first team, featuring 10 La Liga titles and six Ballon d'Or awards. He made his first senior appearance as a 17-year-old in 2004-05 and went on to be named to the UEFA Team of the Year 11 different times.

There will be no shortage of clubs interested in the superstar, especially after scoring 30 goals in 35 league matches last season. Both Manchester City and Paris Saint-Germain are reportedly "keeping a close eye" on the situation, according to Mundo Deportivo (h/t Freddie Pye of Sports Illustrated).

A move to Manchester City would allow Messi to rejoin manager Pep Guardiola, who coached Barcelona to two Champions League titles during his run from 2008-12. The Premier League squad lost in the UCL final last season and could use Messi to help get over the top.

PSG reached the Champions League finals two years ago and lost in the semifinals last year, but Messi could create an exciting attack with Kylian Mbappe and former Barcelona teammate Neymar.

Barcelona reportedly hope to finalize Lionel Messi's new five-year contract this week after La Liga agreed to sell 10 percent of its business to CVC Capital Partners for €2.7 billion, which will include a payment of over €250 million to Barca and Real Madrid.

ESPN's Sam Marsden and Moises Llorens reported Wednesday the cash infusion should help Barcelona and Messi wrap up contract talks that have been slowed by the league's financial rules. The Blaugrana want everything in place before they face Juventus for the Joan Gamper Trophy on Sunday.

Messi became a free agent after his previous contract expired June 30.

While he's been available to sign with any club for over a month, there's been no substantiated rumors suggesting he's sought out offers from other clubs. Instead, he helped guide Argentina to the 2021 Copa America title and has been awaiting the chance to sign his new deal with Barca.

The new contract, which will keep him at Camp Nou until he's 39 years old, includes a 50 percent salary reduction as Barcelona spread out the total value across five years to decrease the annual cost, per Sky Sports.

Messi's new deal comes after the club legend attempted to secure a transfer following the 2019-20 term.

In September, the six-time Ballon d'Or winner told Goal's Ruben Uria former Barcelona president Josep Maria Bartomeu informed him he'd missed a June 10 deadline for a free transfer and would need a club to trigger a €700 million release clause, which made a move impossible.

"I thought and was sure that I was free to leave, the president always said that at the end of the season I could decide if I stayed or not," Messi said. "Now they cling to the fact that I did not say it before June 10, when it turns out that on June 10 we were competing for La Liga in the middle of this awful coronavirus and this disease altered all the season."

Bartomeu stepped down in October, and Joan Laporta, who previously served as president from 2003 through 2010, was elected back into the role in March and made re-signing Messi a top priority.

Barca have also signed Sergio Aguero, Memphis Depay, Emerson and Eric Garcia as they attempt to reinvigorate the squad following a disappointing 2020-21 campaign that saw the club finish third in La Liga and get eliminated in the Champions League's round of 16.

The Blaugrana are scheduled to open the new La Liga season Aug. 15 when they host Real Sociedad.

A photo of Lionel Messi with the Copa America trophy is now the most-liked sports photo in Instagram history, per Adriana Garcia of ESPN.

The Barcelona star posted the photo on his account last Sunday after Argentina's victory over Brazil in the Copa American finals. It gave Messi the first major trophy of his international career.

"What a beautiful madness! This is unbelievable!" Messi wrote in the caption (translated by Garcia). "Thank you, God! We are the champions."

Fans have responded in a big way, with the post now topping 20 million likes.

It breaks the previous mark of most likes for an Instagram post, previously held by rival Cristiano Ronaldo. The Portuguese superstar has more than 19.8 million likes for his post honoring the late Diego Maradona in November 2020:

Ronaldo is the most popular individual account on Instagram with more than 315 million followers, but Messi's fans still showed their appreciation for a big moment in the player's career.

Barcelona and club legend Lionel Messi have reportedly finalized an agreement on a new five-year contract to bring him back to the Camp Nou after he became a free agent July 1, according to Moises Llorens and Sam Marsden of ESPN.

Llorens and Marsden noted the forward will take a "significant wage reduction," while Adam Shergold of the Daily Mail reported the pay cut could be up to 50 percent to remain at the club.

The new contract also reportedly has a termination clause of £320 million ($444 million).

Messi's historic Barca career nearly came to a close last year, as he told Goal's Ruben Uria in September he'd informed then-president Josep Maria Bartomeu of his intention to leave before the club decided to enforce a disputed contract clause and uphold a €700 million ($827 million) buyout fee, which made it "impossible."

"I thought and was sure that I was free to leave; the president always said that at the end of the season I could decide if I stayed or not," Messi said. "Now they cling to the fact that I did not say it before June 10, when it turns out that on June 10 we were competing for La Liga in the middle of this awful coronavirus."

The 34-year-old continued to pace the Barcelona attack during the 2020-21 season, scoring 38 goals in 47 matches across all competitions, and Joan Laporta was elected as club's president for a second time, previously filling the role from 2003 through 2013.

Laporta's return was a "major factor" for the six-time Ballon d'Or winner, who became "more open to staying throughout the course of the last year," per Marsden and Llorens.

Along with the return of Messi, the Blaugrana have upgraded the squad during the summer transfer window with the arrivals of fellow Argentine Sergio Aguero and Memphis Depay, among others.

The changes were necessary after Barcelona failed to reach their main goals last term, finishing third in La Liga and getting knocked out of the Champions League in the round of 16.

Messi may still leave the club to finish his storied career elsewhere, but he continues to produce at an elite level and it makes sense for him to remain with Barca for as long as that remains the case.

Audio recordings of Real Madrid president Florentino Perez criticizing superstar Cristiano Ronaldo in 2012 were released Wednesday.

"He is mad," Perez said of Ronaldo in audio released by El Confidencial (h/t Adriana Garcia of ESPN). "This chap is an imbecile, he is ill. Do you think this chap is normal? He is not normal, otherwise he wouldn't do the things he does."

Perez also criticized former manager Jose Mourinho, calling him and Ronaldo "abnormal."

"These are guys with huge egos, both of them spoiled," Perez said of the two.

Perez served as the club's president from 2000-06 before returning in 2009.

On Tuesday, El Confidencial (h/t Sam Marsden and Moises Llorens of ESPN) released another recording from when he had initially left the La Liga squad in 2006, in which he ripped former players Iker Casillas and Raul Gonzalez.

Each of those players are currently employees of Real Madrid, with Raul coaching the club's B team and Casillas working for the Real Madrid Foundation.

Perez released a statement on the first recordings, saying the publication of the audio was related to his involvement in the intended creation of the Super League. The 74-year-old has vowed to take legal action.

Wednesday's statement could create further embarrassment for Perez. Ronaldo led Real Madrid to four Champions League titles and was consistently one of the best scorers in the world during his nine seasons in Spain.

Mourinho also found success with the club from 2010-13, including winning the La Liga title in 2011-12.

Unlike the first recording of Perez, this one took place while he was running Real Madrid and discussing two of his most prominent employees. 

Barcelona stars Antoine Griezmann and Ousmane Dembele each apologized after videos recently surfaced of the two mocking Asian people during a 2019 preseason tour in Japan.

As The Athletic noted, one video took place as hotel staff members attempted to fix a television set while Dembele is heard questioning their "backward language" and asking, "Are you technologically advanced in your country or not?" A second video showed Griezmann shouting in an accent using the words "Ching chong."

"I have always engaged against all forms of discrimination," Griezmann said on Twitter (translated by The Athletic). "For a couple of days now some people want to pass me for a man that I am not. I completely refute the accusations against me and I am sorry if I have offended my Japanese friends."

Dembele also released a statement regarding the video:

Recently, a private video from 2019 has been circulating on social networks. The scene happens to be in Japan. It could have taken place anywhere on the planet, I would have used the same expressions.

So I wasn't targeting any community. I sometimes use these kinds of expressions in private, with friends, regardless of their origin. This video is now public. I can therefore imagine that it could have offended the people present in these images. Therefore, I offer them my most sincere apologies.

There has not yet been any announcement about potential punishment for either player, per ESPN.

Griezmann and Dembele are teammates both at Barcelona and for the France national team. The forwards were both on the Euro 2020 roster for France as the favorites suffered a disappointing early exit in the Round of 16. 

Barcelona president Joan Laporta confirmed Friday the La Liga club continues to work toward a resolution to keep superstar forward Lionel Messi at Camp Nou.

"Messi? It's progressing. He wants to stay, we want him to stay. We are on the way to finding a formula," Laporta told Spanish outlet Mundo Deportivo (via Jamie Kemble of Football Espana).

The 34-year-old club legend became a free agent when his contract expired Thursday.

Messi nearly made a high-profile exit from Barca after last season, but he explained to Goal's Ruben Uria in September a disputed contract clause and a €700 million buyout fee made a departure "impossible."

"I thought and was sure that I was free to leave, the president always said that at the end of the season I could decide if I stayed or not," Messi said. "Now they cling to the fact that I did not say it before June 10, when it turns out that on June 10 we were competing for La Liga in the middle of this awful coronavirus and this disease altered all the season."

Laporta, who previously served as the club's president from 2003 through 2010, was elected back into the role in March following the departure of Josep Maria Bartomeu.

ESPN's Sam Marsden and Moises Llorens reported Wednesday the return of Laporta was a "major factor" in the change of heart from Messi, who's "grown more open to staying throughout the course of the last year."

So, while there's mutual interest in continuing a partnership that began when the Argentina international arrived at the club's La Masia youth academy in 2001, there are financial hurdles.

La Liga president Javier Tebas told Mundo Deportivo (via ESPN) in late June that Barcelona needed to reduce their wage bill for the 2021-22 term in order to fit in Messi's new contract.

"Barcelona have exceeded their wage cap," Tebas said. "I hope they can keep Messi, but to do so, they will have to make cuts elsewhere."

Meanwhile, Messi remained his typically dynamic self this past season with 30 goals and nine assists across 35 La Liga appearances. He added five goals in six Champions League matches.

The Argentina national team has reached this summer's 2021 Copa America quarterfinals thanks in part to the forward's tournament-high three goals in the group stage.

While La Albiceleste prepare to take on Ecuador in the quarters in Brazil on Saturday, work continues back in Spain as Barcelona look to finalize a contract for the face of the club.