The vice president of Barcelona Josep Maria Bartomeu has said that the club has started negotiations with the Barcelona superstar Lionel Messi over the possibility of extending his contract. The 25-year-old Argentine striker is regarded as one of the best in the world. He recently scored 73 goals in all competitions for Barcelona last season.
Hence, Barcelona feel that it is imperative that they extended the contract of the player, despite the fact that it has more than four years to run. It is thought that Barcelona will be offering Lionel Messi a new six-year contract that will keep him at the club until 2018, though there is speculation on Man Utd Soccer News that Messi might feel the time is right to move on.
Lionel Messi is already one of the highest-paid players in the world, but he is certainly not interested in getting more money out of the club according to Josep Maria Bartomeu. He has said that Lionel Messi is a player who just wants to stay at Barcelona as long as possible. The club have made a good start to the la Liga season under the presence of Lionel Messi, who has been scoring goals in his usual rate in the first few matches of the season. Barcelona sit top of the la Liga standings eight points ahead of arch rivals Real Madrid.
“Messi was born here as a professional. He grew up with the project, he believes in the project and he’s the leader of the project. Money comes later. He wouldn’t be so happy at any other club. The Barca dressing-room is really close-knit. The players get on very well and there’s a good relationship with the fans in the stands. The people are continuing to enjoy things and the titles will come,” Bartomeu told La Graderia. Messi is already the leading scorer at Barcelona this season after he has got 10 goals to his name.