Come Monday morning, Barcelona will have elected a new president.
The Barcelona presidential elections are a day away and frontrunner Joan Laporta has made a bold claim regarding the future of Lionel Messi.
In the final debate, Laporta claimed that he believed it would be difficult to convince Messi to stay if any other candidate other than himself became the club’s new president.
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"“We have to get him to stay, because he wants to stay,” Laporta said. “If any other candidate wins, it will be much more difficult for him to stay. I know he would study my proposal.“He will see we have a competitive sporting and economic plan. He needs to feel wanted.”Source: Sport"
It is definitely a bold move by Laporta claiming that Messi will more than likely leave if any of the other candidates end up winning the Barcelona presidency.
As has been stated time and time again, Messi is unlikely to make any final decision until the end of the season. He is set to hear the proposal from whoever ends up being president.
Laporta is using his previous time as president and the success the team had to his advantage. He had a good relationship with the Argentinian back then and there is no proof to indicate that the relationship has soured.
If there is any semblance of truth with Laporta’s claim, it is with Toni Freixa who said he was “disappointed” in the manner Messi decided to leave ahead of the start of the season. He also said everything comes to an end, which led many to interpret it as he would not have been terribly bothered had Messi left.
Resolving Messi’s future is going to be at the top of the list of the next president. For Barcelona, the best news is that by the start of next week, they will finally have a new president and board working to repair a club that has had its fair share of scandals and controversies the past few years.