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Carlo Ancelotti explains why he would be happy to see Lionel Messi back at Barcelona.
Despite the apparent negative effects of one of the best players in history joining Real Madrid’s toughest rival, Lionel Messi’s return to Barcelona this summer has been acknowledged by Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti as something he would be glad to see.
After two seasons at Paris Saint-Germain, Messi’s contract is about to expire, putting the 35-year-old at a new professional crossroads.
In addition to PSG’s acceptance of a new contract with Messi, Mp3bullet Sport, revealed earlier this month that Barcelona’s public confidence in clinching a reunion is doubtful. It is now more likely that he will go back to Camp Nou, where he lived for 21 years, until the summer of 2021.
Messi has spent time in the city over the past several days and is scheduled to hold discussions with Barcelona. On Monday, he was seen out to dinner with former colleagues Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba.
Messi will surely help Barcelona, which is already expected to win La Liga this season ahead of Real Madrid, even though he will turn 36 in June.
However, Ancelotti claims it won’t affect Spanish football as a whole since Messi would bring more attention back to La Liga.
“Messi can do whatever he wants and Barcelona too. It’s not an issue for me,” the Real coach said. “I like him as a player. For Spanish football it could be nice to have him. But it’s a matter for Messi and Barcelona.”
Messi famously wanted to leave Barcelona in 2020 out of frustration with how the club was being run under former president Josep Maria Bartomeu.
But by 2021 he was happy to stay and even agreed on a new contract until potentially 2026.
But those spending restrictions, which have plagued Barcelona in recent seasons as a result of the dire status of the club finances, prevented the agreement from being recorded. Messi was forced to go and chose to sign a two-year contract with PSG as a free agent.
The seven-time Ballon d’Or winner struggled by his usual standards during his debut season in France but has been much more at home in 2022/23.
That being said, his ties to Barcelona, both the club and the city, remain incredibly strong, having spent a third of his life there at the time he left.