Pundits and managers have moaned a lot about player power in football, but the entire situation with Lionel Messi indicate just how much power players have.
The whole issue is a fairly simple one which is that he’s had enough and he wants to leave the club but Barca have no intention of letting him go, so any team will need to come in with an acceptable offer to get Messi.
One reason is responsible for the entire mess that brought about the saga and that is because Messi thought he had an option in his contract that allowed him to leave for free, but La Liga have had to come out and insist that it’s not the case – his contract and the €700m release clause are valid.
Expectedly, La Liga would always stand on Barca’s side because Messi is a huge part of how they market the league.
And now, as if there wasn’t enough tension between the sides already, it now sounds like Messi has told LaLiga giants that he no longer considers himself to be a Barcelona player.
He’s not mentioned belonging to another club though so it is safe to presume he simply sees himself as a free agent, this one looks destined for a lengthy court battle.
Interpretation:
”Messi is expected at the Barcelona CT at the moment, but he will not take the pre-season exams.
”He will not go because he has already sent an official statement to Barcelona saying that he is no longer a player of the club, relying on the unilateral termination clause.”
Who knows if it will eventually taint his legacy at Barcelona, but it’s certainly going to damage his relationship with the club.
This article was most recently revised and updated 3 years ago
