Lionel Messi almost left Barcelona last summer after handing in a transfer request; the 34-year-old had been expected to sign a new five-year contract; his wages were to be reduced by 50 percent under terms of a new deal.]Lionel Messi will no longer be part of Barcelona despite both sides reaching an agreement over a new contract. The La Liga club announced on Thursday, citing economic and structural obstacles to the renewal of the deal.

This is what FC Barcelona announced on their website :

“Despite FC Barcelona and Lionel Messi has reached an agreement and the clear intention of both parties to sign a new contract today, this cannot happen because of Spanish LaLiga regulations on player registration.

As a result of this situation, Messi shall not be staying on at FC Barcelona. Both parties deeply regret that the wishes of the player and the club will ultimately not be fulfilled.

FC Barcelona wholeheartedly expresses its gratitude to the player for his contribution to the aggrandizement of the club and wishes him all the very best for the future in his personal and professional life”

Lionel Messi is still trying to process like the rest of us. Barcelona announced on Thursday afternoon that the captain will no longer stay at the club with a bombshell statement, claiming that the La Liga rules made it impossible for Barça to register Messi’s contract, and the player is in “shock” according to sources.

Messi will not make any public statement until there is more clarity, and some of that clarity should come in the form of a press conference by president Joan Laporta on Friday. Messi wants to say goodbye to the fans and wants to release a joint statement with Barça, according to the report.

Messi returned to Barcelona from vacation on Wednesday and was certain he was going to sign a new five-year deal with the club, with reports saying only minor details had to be worked through between the two parties before the deal was made official this weekend.

But everything has changed, and literally everyone, Messi included, was blindsided by the news in the sports world. Lionel Messi really isn’t a Barça player anymore. Wow.