Both Juventus and Barcelona have failed to qualify for the Quarter-Final stage of the Champions League, marking it as the first time since the 2004-05 season that both Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo failed to go through the Round-of-16 stage of the tournament.
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The disappointing end to their dreams of winning the European glory has sparked many to believe that this could potentially be the last time the pair play in the Champions League for their respective clubs.
Cristiano made the move to the Italian giants in 2018 for a fee of 117 million euros to bring them their first Champions League trophy since the 95/96 campaign. Unfortunately for the Portuguese international, the Bianconeri failed to lift the European title despite continuing their dominance in Seria A, winning the Italian Champion since the 2011/12 season.
The current campaign, however, marks the first time where Juve are not the clear favorites to win the league with both Inter and AC Milan fighting on. Meanwhile, things in Barcelona aren’t great either. While Ronald Koeman’s side has managed to reach the Copa del Rey finals after successfully performing a thrilling remontada against Sevilla, they are currently in a tight race for the La Liga title.
Barca are set to face Athletic Bilbao in the Copa del Rey finals while they sit in the second position on the La Liga table with Atletico Madrid leading by 6 points. To win the Spanish league, the Catalans must win each and every single one of the remaining matches, to close the gap. The two sides are set to face each other on the 9th of May and this would be Barca’s best chance to reach the top.
While both Ronaldo and Messi are yet to make a decision over their future, the pair may decide to leave their respective clubs with Paris Saint-Germain named favorites to land either or both the superstars. Meanwhile, the French side are fighting their own battle of keeping their star players.
While Neymar looks to continue at the Parc des Prince, Kylian Mbappe’s situation remains uncertain. The World Cup winner is heavily linked with a move to Real Madrid and if he does decide to leave, both Messi and Ronaldo are guaranteed to be contacted by the Parisians for a mega-deal.
Leonardo talks Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo
PSG sporting director, Leonardo, has now opened up about these speculations linking the two superstars to his club,
"“We have nothing at all in relation to the future, except the idea of extending the players that we already have. There is nothing to contract or plan for anything. We are also obliged to measure what will be the financial results of this season. So, we’re attentive, but there is nothing (with Lionel Messi).” Leonardo told RMC SportSource Goal"
Meanwhile, when asked about potentially securing Ronaldo from Juve, the chief said,
"“PSG is very desired, in general. All the great players are linked to PSG. This is something that must be valued. We are always in the position to speak with the great players, who would like to come. But we have no negotiations in progress regarding a new player.”"
While many football fans would love to see PSG acquire both Ronaldo and Messi to finally see how the two superstars would compliment each other, it is unlikely that those dreams would be fulfilled. Both Juve and Barca are currently in a ‘developing’ phase where Ronald Koeman and Andrea Pirlo are slowly making the squad play the way they want them to.
Would you like to see Messi and Ronaldo play together in Paris?