Lionel Messi Spotted Dining With PSG Players Before Barcelona Exit
- Lionel Messi has departed from Spanish giants Barcelona, where he spent his entire professional football career
- The Argentina international was linked with a move to Premier League champions Manchester City but is confirmed to be heading to Paris Saint-Germain
- The six-time Ballon d'Or winner was seen dining with PSG stars Neymar and Di Maria ahead of his expected move to the club
PAY ATTENTION: Click “See First” under the “Following” tab to see Briefly.co.za News on your News Feed!
Lionel Messi was spotted dining with Paris Saint-Germain stars before Barcelona chiefs announced 24 hours later that he will not be playing for the club in the upcoming season.
This latest development came as a shocking revelation for Barcelona fans, who were expecting the Blaugrana Sniper to put pen to paper on a new deal.
Source: Getty Images
For the past 21 years, Messi has been playing for the Catalan giants and, in the process, winning all available silverware.
PAY ATTENTION: Never miss breaking news – join Briefly News' Telegram channel
The Argentine was even said to have accepted a pay cut for him to remain at the Camp Nou, but club bosses were unable to register him for the coming League season.
According to a Daily Mail, report Lionel Messi will be leaving Barcelona for free and could join Manchester City or Paris Saint-Germain.
And a picture that emerged of him enjoying an evening out with PSG players may point to his sudden change of heart, as he was pictured with former Barca team-mate Neymar.
Argentina teammates Angel Di Maria and Leandro Paredes were also spotted, along with Italian star Marco Verratti. The PSG stars are said to have begged Messi to join them in France.
Messi bids Camp Nou adieu in emotional last press conference
Earlier, Briefly News reported that Messi has finally said his goodbyes to Barcelona after the Catalan giants failed to register him for the upcoming season.
The 34-year-old superstar's contract ended in June and he had agreed to extend his deal with the Spanish La Liga outfit.
The six-time Ballon d'Or winner won several titles with the club including 4 Champions League titles, 10 La Liga titles, seven Copa Del Rey tophies, among others.
The 2021 Copa America winner has been a free agent since 1 July but Barcelona officials claimed that he would be signing for another five years.
Enjoyed reading our story? Download BRIEFLY's news app on Google Play now and stay up-to-date with major South African news!
Source: Briefly News
Kelly Lippke (Senior Editor) Kelly Lippke is a copy editor/proofreader who started her career at the Northern-Natal Courier with a BA in Communication Science/Psychology (Unisa, 2007). Kelly has worked for several Caxton publications, including the Highway Mail and Northglen News. Kelly’s unique editing perspective stems from an additional major in Linguistics. Kelly joined Briefly News in 2018 and she has 14 years of experience. Kelly has also passed a set of trainings by Google News Initiative. You can reach her at kelly.lippke@briefly.co.za.
Tshepiso Mametela (Head of Current Affairs Desk) Tshepiso Mametela is a seasoned journalist with eight years of experience writing for online and print publications. He is the current affairs Head of Desk at Briefly News. He was a news reporter for The Herald, a senior sports contributor at Opera News SA, and a reporter for Caxton Local Media’s Bedfordview and Edenvale News and Joburg East Express community titles. He has attended media workshops, including the crime and court reporting one by the Wits Justice Project and Wits Centre for Journalism in 2024. Email: tshepiso.mametela@briefly.co.za
