Messi tells Barcelona he wants to leave

Argentinian striker Lionel Messi informed Barcelona he wants to leave the club after a tumultuous season with the Spanish giants. Messi's lawyers sent Barcelona a fax in which they announced Messi's desire to rescind his contract by triggering a release clause, sending shockwaves throughout world of football.

Barcelona have yet to officially react but are understood to believe the clause expired in June and that he remains under contract until the end of the 2021 season. "In principal, this clause expired on June 10, but the unusual nature of this season disrupted by the coronavirus opened the way for Messi to ask to be released from his contract now," wrote Spanish sports daily Marca. "It's the first step towards opening negotiations over his departure, on the basis of which his release clause amounts to 700 million euros ($828 million)."

Messi joined Barcelona's youth academy at the age of 13 and made his debut in 2004 as a 17year-old. The six-time Ballon d'Or winner is the club's record scorer with 634 goals and has won the Champions League four times. But his future at Barca was thrown into serious doubt following a humiliating 8-2 loss to Bayern Munich in the Champions League quarterfinals in Lisbon 11 days ago.

It marked the first time Barca had conceded eight goals in a game since losing to Sevilla 8-0 in the 1946 Spanish Cup. The humbling defeat sparked drastic changes within the club. Coach Quique Setien was sacked after barely six months in charge while sporting director Eric Abidal was also dismissed after Barca's first season without a trophy since 2007. Argentine sports daily Ole described Messi's wish to leave as a "complete bombshell", but he has had regular disagreements with the club's board in recent times.