Barcelona President Joan Laporta announced the final approval of the club’s board of directors to erect a historic statue of his legend Lionel Messi.

“We will build a statue of Leo Messi outside the Spotify Camp Nou,” Laporta said in comments reported by the Catalan newspaper “Sport”. The decision has been made.

But Laporta’s statement came at a time when the newspaper “Sport” warned the Catalan club that the Argentine star might not accept a return to Barcelona, ​​if he felt that he would not be the first man in the team.

The newspaper stressed that Messi will categorically refuse to return to Barcelona next summer, if he feels that he will be the “second man” in the team behind Polish striker Robert Lewandowski.

It was also reported that the player considered it a betrayal on the part of Laporta to cancel his contract extension agreement at the last minute, forcing Messi to leave the team.

Messi joined Paris Saint-Germain in August 2021 as a free transfer, and his contract with the French club continues until 2023.

Messi remains open to all options, but he prefers to resolve his position after completing his participation with the Argentine national team in the Qatar World Cup 2022.

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