Sport24.az
A major scandal is erupting around the failure of Lionel Messi's return to his home club. Sport24.az reports that two days ago, Barcelona's former head coach Xavi stated that the transfer did not take place due to the player's financial demands or La Liga restrictions, but rather by order of President Joan Laporta.
This sensational information was also confirmed by Mateu Alemany, Barcelona's former sports director, who currently works at Atletico Madrid. He claimed that the contract was technically possible, but admitted that the Argentine footballer's transfer was stopped at the last moment by the club's management:
"Leo was already ready. In January 2023, after winning the World Cup, we spoke on the phone and he said he wanted to come back. We negotiated until March. I told Laporta that Messi was ready from a football perspective. The president started negotiations with his father and we got permission from La Liga. But it was the president who stopped everything. My interest is in telling the truth: Leo did not return to Barcelona because the president did not want him. It is a lie that La Liga or Jorge Messi wanted more money. The president and his entourage said "no", claiming that they could not afford it and that Messi's influence would negatively affect the situation within the club. Xavi is right. We were told that the operation was possible. Xavi is telling the truth."
