Published 11:11 IST, August 26th 2020
Lionel Messi forcing Barcelona exit after Ronald Koeman's "privileges are over" comment
Media reports covering the Lionel Messi transfer have suggested that the Barca forward wants to leave the club after Ronald Koeman's latest comments.
While the Lionel Messi transfer rumours have been going around for a while now, the latest developments have all but confirmed that the Argentine superstar indeed wants to leave Barcelona. Lionel Messi reportedly sent a fax to the club management on Tuesday morning signalling his intention to leave the club and exercise a clause in his contract that will allow him to leave for free. A similar development was confirmed to the Associated Press, with the LaLiga giants confirming that Lionel Messi has indeed asked to leave Barcelona. Following the news, Carlos Puyol and Luis Suarez were seen supporting the Argentine wizard's decision on Twitter, as the social media platform exploded with all sorts of Messi transfer rumours. Now, a report in AS has shed light on the reason that was the last straw, one that forced Lionel Messi’s sudden decision to leave Barcelona.
Messi leaves Barcelona: Ronald Koeman interaction one of the reasons
Ronal Koeman was appointed as Barcelona boss after the club decided to sack Quique Setien following the 8-2 defeat to Bayern Munich in the Champions League. Media reports had suggested that Lionel Messi had cut short his holiday to meet the new Barcelona manager. However, according to Catalan radio station RAC1 covering Messi transfer news, at his first meeting with Ronald Koeman, Messi said that he sees himself "more out of the club than in it".
In a new development, as reported by Diario Ole, Ronald Koeman’s statements to Messi are one of the main reasons for the cropping up of the Messi transfer reports. According to the report, Lionel Messi does not want to work with the new Barcelona manager after the latter’s latest comments. The 57-year-old allegedly told Lionel Messi that his "privileges" in the squad are over and that he’ll have to do everything for the team. Hinting at his plans for the six-time Ballon d'Or winner, Koeman explained that he is going to be inflexible and that Messi will have to think about the team first.
Also Read: Twitter Explodes As Barcelona Reportedly Confirm That Lionel Messi Wants To Leave The Club
Messi buyout clause explained
While the latest news has all but confirmed that a Messi transfer may indeed be on the cards this season, the player’s contract may act as a barrier to any negotiation. Messi has asked the club to refer to a clause that allows him to depart for free at the end of each season. The said clause will allow any Messi transfer to be completed without a fee, rather than pay his reported £632 million release clause. However, Barcelona will counter the clause saying that it expired on June 10, with Messi’s lawyers hinting that the date can be extended since the 2019-20 campaign ended at a later date.
Image Courtesy: AP, Lionel Messi Twitter
Updated 11:11 IST, August 26th 2020