Lionel Messi is poised to change his mind and quit Paris Saint-Germain this summer, according to reports in France.
The superstar’s contract runs out at the end of the season, with the French giants able to offer him an additional year.
During the World Cup in Qatar last winter – where Messi, 35, led Argentina to glory – his father Jorge indicated to PSG president Nasser Al-Khelaifi that Lionel had agreed to stay.
But now, according to French outlet L’Equipe, Messi and the club are ‘close to divorce’, with the veteran set to walk out when the campaign ends after negotiations in recent weeks saw both parties actually move further apart.
The player’s family want to return to Barcelona, where he spent his entire career before moving to Paris in 2021.
PSG need Messi to take a 25 per cent pay cut on his hugely lucrative £25.6million-a-year contract due to their issues complying with Financial Fair Play.
Messi also reportedly wants guarantees on the manager and players targeted by the club this summer, with PSG as yet unable to assuage his concerns.
