Messy contract dispute for Lionel Messi hoping to leave Barcelona

THE Argentina international, Lionel Messi, sent a memo to his current club Barcelona on Tuesday, August 25, saying he wishes to exercise a clause in his contract, allowing him to leave for free with immediate effect.

Barcelona believes the clause has now expired and Messi is contracted to the club until 2021 with a €700m buy-out clause.

A legal battle is now set to unfold between the club and the player. Messi had a clause in his contract which allowed him to leave for free, if he informed the club of his desire before June 10.

Messi and his team feel the clause should be extended to cover the prolonged season – which ran until August due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Fans, former teammates and players from across the globe have commented on social media platforms to show support.

Gary Lineker tweeted, “If Messi is to leave Barcelona FC by activating a release clause, then I hope the club try to help, not hinder him. He’s been fiercely loyal and their greatest ever player. It would be terribly sad if it finished with a fight between the player and club. “

Messi joined Barcelona aged 13 and has scored a club record of 634 goals in 731 appearances. He has won 34 major trophies with the club, including 10 La Liga titles and four Champions League trophies. Here are some more records he holds:

• Most goals scored in La Liga (444)
• Most Ballons d’Or in history and most Fifa World Player of the Year/Best Fifa Men’s Player Awards (6)
• Top goalscorer in all club competitions in a calendar year: 79 goals in 2012
• The only player to score more than 40 goals in 10 consecutive seasons
• Most goals scored for a single club in the Champions League (115)