11 January 2023 , 11:48
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Lionel Messi has been encouraged to move to MLS by his former Barcelona teammate Riqui Puig.
The Argentine superstar is about to open contract extension negotiations with Paris Saint-Germain having joined the French club on a two-year contract in the summer of 2021. After a difficult debut campaign in Paris, he has netted 12 goals and provided 14 assists this term and has spoken of his happiness at adapting to life in France this term.
Messi has been linked with a return to Barcelona but he has been refusing to answer phone calls made on behalf of a negotiator close to Barca president Joan Laporta, who is desperate for the Argentine star to return to the Camp Nou but his negotiating tactic has so far proven unsuccessful.
MLS club Inter Miami have also explored the possibility of tempting Messi to the United States this summer but despite reports that a deal had been agreed upon at the end of the current season, he appears likely to remain in Paris.
Messi’s former Barca teammate Puig has now encouraged the Argentine to consider moving to MLS, after the central midfielder completed a transfer to LA Galaxy last year. “The truth is that I have no idea,” Puig responded, as per Mundo Deportivo, when asked about Messi’s next step. “I have no contact with him.
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“But if he came to MLS it would be awesome. This league would become even bigger than it is and what it can be. Now that the World Cup is coming up in four years, that may be one of the main factors for many players to come here. If Messi wants to come, he will be more than welcome.”
Lionel Messi has re-found his goal scoring form for PSG this campaign after a difficult debut season (Lionel Hahn/Getty Images)Have Your Say! Should Messi renew his contract at PSG or move to MLS this summer? Tell us what you think here.
Puig’s comments promoting a move to the United States for Messi come as his PSG boss Christophe Galtier confirmed that the club were in talks over extending the 35-year-old’s deal at the Parc des Princes.
“There have been conversations, the sports management spoke with Leo regarding a possible renewal,” Galtier said on Tuesday. “I don't know where the negotiations are. I think he is happy in Paris. Then we have to wait and see what position he has regarding the club's project. It's something that I don't deal directly with him."
Last year, Messi was not happy in Paris; struggling to grasp the French language with his young family, who were happy with their life in Barcelona prior to the club no longer being able to renew his contract – with the last-minute nature of his departure seemingly causing friction between the player and the club’s board. But times have changed.
Messi returned to PSG training last week after his World Cup success with Argentina (PSG via Getty Images)"I like Paris a lot more now, I have discovered the city and I find it magnificent," Messi explained, in quotes carried by Le Parisien last month. "In the first year, there was a huge change. Things happened very suddenly, it was not my objective to leave Barcelona, and everything about it was very abrupt.
"After this long period and the difficult times, I am happy to live where I live, and my family and I are enjoying Paris. It was hard at the start, we had stayed all our lives in the same place, I had never moved, and I did not know what it was like to leave.
"We did not expect this, it happened very quickly, and we had to leave Barcelona overnight. We found ourselves in a new environment. We had our life in Barcelona, our friends, our habits, and we found ourselves in a different place, with another language, another football, another climate, I suffered a lot from that. It was hard. But, today, I enjoy everything including football."