Zidane indicates he wants Messi to stay at Barcelona

Martin Macdonald

• Updated: 17 May 2021 16:20 BST
• 2 min read

It seems Zinedine Zidane’s preference is for Lionel Messi to remain at Barcelona beyond the summer, judging by his recent comments,

Over the past year or so, Messi has became increasingly unhappy at Camp Nou, with the 2019/20 season representing the first in 12 years which saw the Blaugrana fail to win a trophy.

READ MORE: Messi, Ramos, Dembele & Clasico stars we may never see again

At the conclusion of that season, he asked to leave, only for Barcelona and then club president Josep Maria Bartomeu to deny his request.

Messi’s current deal with Barca ends in June of this year, and with no signs of a new agreement, there is a real possibility he could leave on a free transfer.

This weekend, Barcelona take on Real Madrid in what could be Messi’s final ever Clasico match, and when asked about that, Zidane surprisingly told reporters:

“Let him stay at Barcelona, ​​it’s fine there”.

This would indicate that Zidane would not be overly upset if Messi, often the scourge of Madrid, remained with Barca.

With regards to a potential exit, the rumours have actually died down in recent weeks due to Barcelona’s increasingly good form in the league.

However, with no deal agreed yet, and with Barca being knocked out of the Champions League at the first knockout stage, Messi’s future remains up in the air.

Zidane on Mbappe transfer to Real Madrid

Within the same pre-match Clasico press conference, Zidane was once again asked about the future of Kylian Mbappe, who has been constantly linked with a transfer to the Santiago Bernabeu this summer.

Again, though, the Frenchman provided a diplomatic answer.

“I know him and we know each other well. That’s it,” Zidane responded.

“He’s not my player and I can’t talk about anything. What he wants to do in the future we will see”.

Real Madrid didn’t spend a penny last summer and it is believed they have been potentially saving money for a Galactico signing in 2021, with Mbappe and Borussia Dortmund striker Erling Haaland on their wishlist.