Messi reportedly agrees to join Paris Saint-Germain following Barcelona exit
Famed Barcelona football forward Lionel Messi has reportedly agreed to join Paris Saint-Germain (PSG), Khalifa bin Hamad al Thani - brother of the Emir of Qatar and PSG owner Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani - confirmed on Twitter.
Messi will play for fellow Argentine Mauricio Pochettino and alongside longtime friends Neymar and Angel di María, among others, after agreeing a two-year contract (reportedly with an option for a third) with the Ligue 1 giants.
An announcement is expected at an event in Paris on Tuesday.
Barcelona President Joan Laporta released a statement saying that could not sign Messi to a new contract due to La Liga rules over the size of Messi's salary - which the star forward had agreed to cut in half.
La Liga is Spain's top professional football division.
Laporta said that Messi, 34, was told two days ago that the club could not continue with his new contract, which they planned to be for two years - but then asked to spread the cost of that contract over five years.
La Liga President Javier Tebas reportedly gave Laporta a choice in recent days: keep Messi by giving up on the European Super League, or carry on with the Super League and lose Messi.
At: https://soccer.nbcsports.com/2021/08/06/messi-reportedly-agrees-psg-contract-barcelona-exit/
Barcelona star football forward Lionel Messi (left) with Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) players Neymar, Leandro Paredes, Angel Di María and Marco Verratti.
The photo, posted on Wednesday by Neymar on his Twitter page, fueled speculation that Messi had chosen to join PSG - a rumor confirmed today by the brother of the team's owner, the Emir of Qatar.
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