Ariedo Braida, Barcelona’s international sporting director, has admitted that Lionel Messi may leave the club this summer, if clubs like Manchester City or Paris Saint-Germain are interested.
Messi’s current deal with the La Liga giants expires in June 2019 and contains a £205million release clause.
But when Braida was asked about Messi’s future, he told Catalan TV channel Esport 3: “I believe it’s very difficult that Messi will leave Barca but at times in football strange things happen.
“Now with these clubs that have so much money like (Manchester) City and PSG, certain amounts don’t seem to have a value. In football, things happen that appear impossible but I hope he will remain.”
“Sometimes strange things happen. He is a phenomenon, an extra-terrestrial comparable to [Diego] Maradona and Pele.”
Messi had insisted earlier this year that he was happy at the Camp Nou and rubbished speculations linking him with a move to Chelsea at the time.
The Argentine skipper scored a hat-trick in Barca’s 6-1 win over Rayo Vallecano, as they overtook Real Madrid at the top of the Spanish top division.
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