Lionel Messi has made his much-awaited decision regarding his future, opting to move to MLS side Inter Miami in a monumental deal that would see the Argentine superstar play on American soil in the next stage of his legendary career.
π¨π¨ BREAKING: Lionel Messi to Inter Miami, here we go! The decision has been made and it will be announced by Leo in the next hours #InterMiami
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) June 7, 2023
πΊπΈ Messi will play in MLS. No more chances for Barcelona/Al Hilal despite trying to make it happen.
ππππ ππ ππ#Messi #MLS pic.twitter.com/OTYWIlEzNc
The world's greatest player had multiple offers from other European clubs, including his boyhood club Barcelona.
π¨π³ Included in Lionel Messi's deal with Inter Miami:
— Transfer News Live (@DeadlineDayLive) June 7, 2023
β‘οΈ Percentage on subscriptions to the MLS Season Pass from APPLE TV, paid directly by APPLE
β‘οΈ Percentage of Inter Miami shirt sales, paid directly by Adidas
β‘οΈ Possibility of acquiring an MLS franchise at the end of hisβ¦ pic.twitter.com/liWC0wgDt8
Messi also rejected an astounding $1.3 billion offer from Saudi Arabian club Al-Hilal by choosing to play in Florida.
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Lionel Messi Wanted Barcelona Return
After the news of his transfer broke, the 35-year-old gave an interview explaining his reasoning for choosing Inter Miami.
Messi initially prioritized a return to Barcelona, but he stated that there was no official offer from the club, despite his father and agent Jorge Messi meeting with Barcelona president Joan Laporta this past week.
Messi: "Money, never been an issue with me. We didn't even discuss the contract with Barcelona! They sent me a proposal but was never an official, written and signed proposal" π΅π΄ #FCB
"We never negotiated my salary. It wasn't about money otherwise I was going to join Saudi". pic.twitter.com/GXIPVyNIkY— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) June 7, 2023
He also said he wasn't happy during his time with PSG and did not care about money during this transfer saga.
Aside from these, Messi did not want a repeat of what happened two years ago, when Barcelona promised to re-sign him, only for the deal to collapse in the final days of the transfer window due to financial difficulties. The situation stressed his family as they had to decide to move to Paris quickly.
The World Cup winner added that he did not want to be the reason why other Barcelona players might reduce their salaries or get sold to accommodate him.
However, Messi hopes to return to Barcelona to help the club and for a proper farewell.
FC Barcelona released a statement regarding Messi's decision to play for Inter Miami.
Official statement from FC Barcelona on Leo Messi's decision to play for Inter Miamihttps://t.co/iuliiDOxsY
— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) June 7, 2023
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