Messi signs new Barca contract to end speculations over future
Lionel Messi signed his new contract with Barcelona, the Camp Nou side confirmed. Messi’s new deal will run until 2021 and has a release clause of €700 million.
Barca announced the news in an official club statement, which read, “FC Barcelona and Lionel Messi signed on Saturday morning a new contract that will keep the Argentinian superstar at the club through the 2020/21 season.
“The buyout clause was set at €700m. Thus, by the time the new deal expires, the 30-year-old striker will have spent 17 years with the first team.”
The 30-year-old attacker’s future had been the subject of much speculation, as his previous contract was due to expire at the end of June 2018, which would have left him able to negotiate with rivals as of January 1.
The news is a massive boost to the club, which saw Andres Iniesta sign a new contract amid similar rumors earlier this season. There were reports that Messi was not happy with the running of the side, too, which generated rumors that he could depart.
President Josep Maria Bartomeu, however, was insistent that a deal had been reached with the academy graduate, who has established himself as one of the world’s elite players during a professional career at Camp Nou spanning 14 years, having first arrived at the club as a 13-year-old in 2000.
During this period, Messi has played 602 times for the Catalans and has scored 523 goals, helping them to 30 trophies – a joint club record held alongside teammate Andres Iniesta.
He has won La Liga on eight occasions, earned five Copa del Rey crowns and four Champions League titles.
On a personal basis, he has five Ballons d’or to his credit, the latest of which he won in 2015.
On Friday, he picked up a fourth European Golden Shoe, equaling the record of great rival Cristiano Ronaldo.
Moreover, he has shattered records at all levels, notably being the Spanish topflight’s all-time top marksman.
Having entered his fourth decade, he shows no sign of allowing his form to slip. In the first 19 appearances of the 201718 season, he has amassed 16 goals in all competitions and has been credited with a further five assists.
His new deal will keep him at Barca until he is 34, with club legend Xavi suggesting that might be a good point to retire.
However, the player has previously expressed his desire to one day return to childhood club Newell’s Old Boys.
Barcelona currently enjoys a four-point lead over second placed Valencia in the Primera Division, with a 10-point gap back to Real Madrid.
No relationship
Messi admited he does not know if he and Cristiano Ronaldo will ever be friends as they “only see each other at awards ceremonies”.
While football fans continue to debate over who is better, Messi admited he and Ronaldo rarely spend much time together apart from at the award ceremonies where they are usually pitted against each other.
“I don’t know if we will be [friends in the future]. Friendship is built through spending time together and getting to know each other,” he told Marca.
“We have no relationship, mainly because we only see each other at awards ceremonies and that’s the only time we speak. Everything is fine, but our lives don’t cross over very often.”
Messi and Ronaldo will battle it out for the Ballon d’or again at the start of the year but the Argentina captain believes they are not the only two players in the running for the prize.
“There are many great players around today who can win the Ballon d’or,” he added. “In recent years there have just been two, but now players like Neymar, Kylian Mbappe and Luis Suarez can compete for that award.”
Messi refused to discount Real Madrid domestically or in Europe but said Paris Saint-germain and Manchester City are well-placed to mount a serious Champions League challenge.
“City are one of the strongest teams at the moment, along with PSG. They’ve been the two strongest teams up to this point, but it’s a very long season,” he said.
“I never dismiss Real Madrid for what they have and their experience, even though now they aren’t getting the results people expect. Bayern Munich, too. They’re another big team that will be there at the end of the season, but it’s true that, today, City and PSG are the best.”