Barcelona confirmed that Lionel Messi will leave the La Liga club after 20 years as the Argentine superstar failed to reach an agreement on a new contract with the club after a crucial meeting on Thursday.
Messi has spent his entire career at Barcelona. He walked the club's quarry before scoring 672 goals in 778 games after making his senior team debut in 2004, as he said in a statement on his website on Thursday entitled "Leo Messi will not stay at FC Barcelona" announced.
The statement said: “Despite the fact that FC Barcelona and Lionel Messi have reached an agreement and the clear intention of both parties to sign a new contract today, it cannot do so due to financial and structural obstacles (Spanish League regulations) happen. ”As a result of this situation, Messi will not stay at FC Barcelona. Both parties deeply regret that the wishes of the player and the club are ultimately not fulfilled.
“FC Barcelona would like to sincerely thank the player for his contribution to the club's growth and wish him all the best for the future in his personal and professional life.
Messi moved to Spain at the age of 13 to join Barcelona, where he made his competitive debut in October 2004 at the age of 17. In the following three years he established himself as an all-round player for the club and in his first uninterrupted season in 2008-09 he helped Barcelona achieve their first triple in Spanish football; That year, Messi won his first Ballon d'Or at the age of 22. After three successful seasons, Messi won four consecutive Ballons d'Or, becoming the first player to win the award four times in a row
During the 2011/12 season, he set records in La Liga and Europe for the most goals in a single season, while establishing himself as Barcelona's top scorer of all time. For the next two seasons, Messi finished second in the Ballon d'Or behind Cristiano Ronaldo (his career rival) before regaining his best form in the 2014-15 season, becoming the all-time La Liga goalscorer and Barcelona.