Laporta held out hope Messi would stay at Barcelona for free before PSG move

By Sports Desk October 08, 2021

Joan Laporta has revealed he hoped Lionel Messi would make a last-ditch offer to play for free to avoid him leaving Barcelona.

Messi ended up moving to Paris Saint-Germain in a blockbuster free transfer move in August.

It came after long negotiations over his new Barcelona contract reached a point where the Catalan giants could no longer afford to renew his terms while complying with the financial rules in LaLiga.

Messi, who this week insisted he had not made a mistake in joining PSG, was in tears as he attended his farewell news conference at Camp Nou and admitted he was leaving against his will.

Barca president Laporta was holding out hope Messi would end up staying without taking a salary but ultimately felt it was unreasonable to expect that from the six-time Ballon d'Or winner.

"With Messi I do not get angry because I appreciate him," Laporta said to RAC1. "I love him too much to be angry.

"I know he had a huge desire to stay, but also a lot of pressure because of the offer he had. 

"Everyone knew that he had a very powerful offer. Everything indicated that he already had the offer from PSG and would go there if he did not stay."

Laporta added: "There comes a time when you see that things just cannot happen, and there was disappointment on both sides.

"When it came to making the decision, I thought I was doing the best thing for Barcelona - nothing can put the institution at risk.

"I did hope that at the last minute there would be a change and Messi would say that he would play for free. 

"I would have liked that and he would have convinced me. I understand that the league would have accepted it. But we cannot expect that from a player of his level.

"We have a very good relationship. I knew that if we recovered financially we would compensate him, but we couldn't make demands knowing the offer he had in Paris."

Messi scored his first PSG goal in the Champions League win over Manchester City last week but has failed to score in his first three Ligue 1 appearances, including Sunday's shock 2-0 loss to Rennes.

Related items

  • England call up uncapped pair Jones and Livramento England call up uncapped pair Jones and Livramento

    England have called up uncapped pair Curtis Jones and Tino Livramento to their squad for this week's Nations League matches.

    Liverpool midfielder Jones and Newcastle United full-back Livramento have both been part of the senior squad before without being used.

    England confirmed the news on Wednesday and added Harry Kane is continuing his individualised programme, while Jack Grealish sat out of training with a knock.

    Morgan Gibbs-White, Ezri Konsa and Kobbie Mainoo have each pulled out of the squad since it was announced after sustaining injuries over the weekend.

    The Three Lions host Greece at Wembley on Thursday and then travel to Helsinki to face Finland three days later, with both fixtures coming in Group B2.

    Jones is well known to interim England head coach Lee Carsley, with only two players having been used more under him for the Under-21s in the Three Lions squad for this week's fixtures.

    The 23-year-old played 14 times at that level for England under Carsley, level with Anthony Gordon and behind Noni Madueke (19) and Angel Gomes (16). 

    He was included as part of Gareth Southgate's provisional 33-man squad for Euro 2024, a year on from scoring the winner in the Euro Under-21 Championship final, but did not make the final cut.

    Livramento, meanwhile, was part of the squad for last month's victories over Republic of Ireland and Finland but did not receive his maiden cap.

    The former Chelsea player has featured nine times for Newcastle this season and has helped his club side to three clean sheets, most recently in last weekend's 0-0 draw at Everton.

  • King, David optimistic Soca Warriors will be at their best against Cuba in must-win Nations League fixtures King, David optimistic Soca Warriors will be at their best against Cuba in must-win Nations League fixtures

    With momentum by no means in their favour, Trinidad and Tobago’s interim Head coach Derek King and captain Aubrey David are optimistic that the Soca Warriors might have saved their best for last as they face a must-win situation against Cuba in their upcoming Concacaf Nations League encounters.

    Rooted at the foot of Group B in League A with a point, the Soca Warriors will have to take Cuba’s scalp in hostile territory on Thursday and again in the Twin Island Republic on Monday to not only improve their chances of progressing to the quarterfinals, but more importantly, avoid relegation to League B.

    Jamaica and Nicaragua are set for a top-of-the-table clash as both head the standings on four points each, with Honduras (three points) and Cuba (two points) in close proximity. French Guiana, also on a point, round out the group.

    After suffering a 0-4 loss away to Honduras in their opening fixture, Trinidad and Tobago were expected to rebound at home against French Guiana. Instead, they were held to a goalless stalemate, and that has left them in their current predicament.

    Still, King is hopeful that the addition of experienced midfielders Joevin Jones, Kevin Molino, and others will turn their fortunes and prove rewarding where securing six crucial points is concerned. 

    “The guys are fully aware of the task at hand; we had discussions, and we all know that we need six points. But let us focus on this very important game first. We have to go out there and give it our best shot and get three points to go back home with,” King said in an interview with TTFA Media from the team’s base in Cuba.

    “We had a locally-based team training for two and a half weeks, so we decided that we would go with some of the locally-based players and add some foreign-based players who were not with the team before. I think the guys we added would bring some kind of experience to the unit we have at this point. 

    “They are senior men to the team. They have played overseas as well, professional players. So, I think it's good to add their knowledge with this bunch. They will add some quality to the team as well, so we must go out there and give it our best,” he added.

    Meanwhile, David, who is charged with marshalling the Soca Warriors defensive line, is mindful that Cuba will also fancy their chances of progressing and, as such, are not going to be a walkover.

    “Cuba has a lot of foreign players; they have players who play in Costa Rica, in Guatemala, and the USA as well. Basically, they have a young team, but they’re willing to fight. They’re hungry and want to prove themselves because they’re at home,” David assessed.

    “So it’s just for us to be together and execute our game plan so that we can leave here with three points.

    “We have a lot of young players as well, and some with quality. I think they stepped up in the last Nations League; we saw a lot of them jumping onto the international scene and making a big impact, so it’s just for them to continue on that momentum,” he noted.

  • Former USMNT boss Berhalter announced as new Chicago Fire head coach Former USMNT boss Berhalter announced as new Chicago Fire head coach

    Former United States boss Gregg Berhalter has been named as the new director of football and head coach of MLS side Chicago Fire. 

    Berhalter was sacked as the USMNT head coach nine days after a dismal group-stage exit at the Copa America earlier this year.

    The 51-year-old's arrival means Frank Klopas, who is the Fire's current head coach, will step down and transition into a new role as the club's vice president of football.

    Berhalter does have previous experience in the MLS, spending five years in charge of the Columbus Crew between 2013 and 2018.

    Across his 192 games in charge of the Crew, Berhalter won 76 matches (D46 L70), with his team scoring 287 goals and averaging a win percentage of 38.34%. 

    Berhalter then began his first stint as the USMNT head coach in 2018, starting strongly with victories over rivals Mexico in the first-ever Nations League final as well as in the showpiece match of the 2021 CONCACAF Gold Cup.

    He then guided the USMNT to the round of 16 at the 2022 World Cup before they were beaten 3-1 by the Netherlands. 

    Berhalter's contract expired in December 2022, but was then brought back six months later with a view to guiding the team through to the 2026 World Cup, which the United States would co-host with Canada and Mexico.

    However, Berhalter lasted just 14 games, winning seven of those (D1 L6) and has since been replaced by former Chelsea head coach, Mauricio Pochettino. 

    The 51-year-old arrives at an underperforming Chicago side, who currently occupy last place in the Eastern Conference with one game of the regular season remaining. 

    The Fire have reached the MLS Cup playoffs just twice in the last 15 years, with this campaign the seventh consecutive season they have failed to feature in the post-season. 

    “I’m honoured to be named Director of Football and Head Coach of the Chicago Fire, and I would like to thank Joe Mansueto for his trust," said Berhalter.

    “Chicago is an incredible city, built on communities of hard-working and passionate people who truly love soccer.

    "I look forward to working alongside our staff and players to transform the Fire into a world-class organisation that all our fans and the city can be proud of and will support.”

    Berhalter will officially start his duties for the 2025 MLS season. 

© 2024 SportsMaxTV All Rights Reserved.