Suspicious: Messi Leaving Barcelona
The Claim
Messi has officially announced that he wants to leave Barcelona during the current summer transfer market.
News posted on
Emerging story
In December 2020, social media users claimed that the Argentine professional football legend Lionel Messi may call for his departure from Barcelona in January, since he really wanted to leave one year before the end of his contract. He was prevented by the former president of Barca Josep Maria Bartomeu, who demanded that his negotiators pay the penalty clause in his contract of 700 million euros.
Many news sites confirmed this news.
Misbar’s Analysis
Misbar’s investigation found that the claim is suspicious. After the news went viral, Messi's father wrote on his Instagram page that it was fake news.
Last Tuesday, Messi submitted a request to Barcelona to allow him to leave the Catalan club for the summer, which was rejected by the Barcelona administration. Barcelona club president Josep Maria Bartomeu insists on obtaining the value of Messi's termination if the Argentine player insists on leaving the club.
In an interview with Goal three months ago, Messi stated why he is considering leaving Barcelona.
While Messi has yet said anything concrete about this claim, Barcelona presidential candidate Xavi Vilajoana has called on him to make a public statement of intent regarding his future.
