Messi commits to Barca

LIONEL MESSI has finally put Barcelona fans at ease with a new contract that will keep the star at the Spanish club for four more years.

Messi signed the deal, which has a €700 million buyout clause, to tie him to Barcelona until he is 34-years-old.

‘I’m happy to continue with the club, which is my home,’ Messi said. ‘My dream was to finish my career at Barca and we are moving down that path.’

With his former contract set to run out next summer, Messi would have been free to listen to offers from other teams on January 1. That approaching deadline had generated speculation that Messi could follow Neymar’s lead and leave.

Messi’s new deal includes that massive buyout clause, aimed at keeping away even the likes of French side Paris Saint-Germain, which secured Neymar in the summer by triggering his buyout clause with a record €222 million transfer.