Messi to appeal 21-month jail sentence

Madrid: Barcelona star Lionel Messi will appeal and vowed to clear his name after a court in Spain on Wednesday sentenced him and his father to 21 months in jail for tax fraud, the player’s lawyers said.

The prison sentences are likely to be suspended as it is common in Spain for first offences for non-violent crimes carrying a sentence of less than two years. The Argentine’s lawyers feel an appeal would eventually succeed in persuading the court that Messi and his father have behaved correctly, the player’s representatives told AFP in a statement.