Messi may leave PSG after Qatar World Cup 2022 to make emotional Barcelona return: Report

The rumours of Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) star Lionel Messi’s potential return to Barcelona next year have been gathering pace with each passing day.

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With each passing day, speculation about legendary striker Lionel Messi's likely return to Barcelona next season has gained momentum. Due to the Catalan club's financial problems, the 35-year-old Argentine icon left the club last summer without extending his contract. As a free agent, the seven-time Ballon d'Or winner signed a two-year contract with a one-year extension option with Paris Saint-Germain (PSG). However, there has been much discussion about the Argentina captain returning to Camp Nou, with one report indicating that Messi may leave the Ligue 1 champions after the Qatar World Cup 2022.

Barcelona President Joan Laporta has admitted that Messi's chapter at Barcelona is not over, adding that a fitting farewell would be for the Argentine talisman to spend the final years of his career at Camp Nou. 

Manager Xavi Hernandez is also believed to be pushing the La Liga giants to sign his former teammate and bring him back to Catalonia. Messi, who failed to create much of an impact in his first season at Par des Princes, has signed a contract with Les Parisiens until 2023.

Barcelona is reportedly trying to heal their strained relationship with Messi after his premature summer departure. And now, Manu Sainz, a journalist for Diario AS, has a brand-new update on the future of the former Barca legend. 

Image Credit: Lionel Messi Instagram

The journalist claims that the Blaugrana already know that the Argentine legendary striker plans to leave PSG following the FIFA World Cup in Qatar later this year and is thus attempting to persuade him to return to Camp Nou.

Image Credit: Getty Images

The update from Manu Sainz does not clarify whether Messi intends to leave the Parisian club immediately after the World Cup, i.e., during the January window or wait until the summer to depart as a free agent. However, the latter is more likely to occur.

If that happens, Barcelona will be ready to bring back their beloved legend and give him the proper sendoff he so richly deserved, which would allow him to leave the Blaugrana on his terms.