Lionel Messi has given an interview in which he discussed his exit from Barcelona and the suggestion that he could have stayed at the Camp Nou had he decided to play for free.
Joan Laporta even joked last month about hoping that Messi would make such an offer, but the player has stated that the president – who he hasn’t spoken to since – never directly asked him to do that.
“I did all I could to stay,” Messi insisted in an interview with Sport.
“At no point was I asked to play for free. I was asked to reduce my salary 50 percent and I agreed to that without any problems. We were willing to help the club.
“My wish and my family’s wish was to stay in Barcelona.
“Nobody asked me to play for free, but, at the same time, I think what the president said was inappropriate.
“That hurt me because I don’t think he needed to say that.
“That creates speculation or makes people think things that I don’t think I deserve.” he concluded.
