Messi WILL return to Barcelona, says former team-mate
Martin Macdonald
- 18 Feb 2022 16:09 CST
- 3 min read
Cesc Fabregas believes that Lionel Messi will return to Barcelona one day.
In the summer of 2021, Messi completed a sensational transfer to Paris Saint-Germain after spending his entire career with Barcelona up until that point.
It was Messi's intention to stay at Barcelona beyond the expiration of his contract, but financial problems at the club meant that they could no longer afford to keep him.
The Argentine had previously agreed a significant wage cut on his next contract, but a subsequent ban on player registrations at Barca meant that he had to move on.
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Fabregas, a team-mate of Messi's at Barcelona, believes the stay in Paris is just temporary.
“Barcelona is everything to Messi. His time now in Paris is a passing phase, but he will return one day.
"He is grateful to the club of his life," the Spaniard told Mundo Deportivo.
Fabregas defends Messi performances
Messi arrived at PSG, naturally, to enormous fanfare and it was expected that he might take the club to the next level, particularly in Europe.
Though he has been far from a failure, his return of seven goals and seven assists is far from the level of outlay he enjoyed at Barcelona.
Fabregas has warned against those writing Messi off, comparing the current situation to that of 2014/15 when he inspired Barca to a treble under Luis Enrique.
“I remember the first year of Luis Enrique in which he was criticised a lot. A crisis of all that was made," Fabregas continued.
"Then Barça won the treble. Now something similar can happen.
“I understand that programs have to be sold, but we are talking about a player who can leave you portrayed in a second. With Messi you always have to be careful, just in case. He has rope for a while.”
