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Lionel Messi has finally signed his eagerly anticipated Paris Saint-Germain contract, completing a move that confirms the end of a career-long association with Barcelona and sends the French club into a new era.
PSG said in a statement that the 34-year-old Argentina star had inked a two-year deal with the option for a third season.
“I am excited to begin a new chapter of my career at Paris Saint-Germain,” Messi said.
“Everything about the club matches my football ambitions. I know how talented the squad and the coaching staff are here.
Paris Saint-Germain is delighted to announce the signing of Leo Messi on a two-year contract with an option of a third year.https://t.co/D5Qjq7PJfF#PSGxMESSI ❤️???? pic.twitter.com/msJAnW01V5
— Paris Saint-Germain (@PSG_English) August 10, 2021
“I am determined to help build something special for the club and the fans, and I am looking forward to stepping out onto the pitch at the Parc des Princes.”
No salary details were given but it is believed Messi will earn an annual wage of 35 million euros ($A56 million).
“I am delighted that Lionel Messi has chosen to join Paris Saint Germain and we are proud to welcome him and his family to Paris,” PSG chairman Nasser Al-Khelaifi said.
“He has made no secret of his desire to continue competing at the very highest level and winning trophies, and naturally our ambition as a club is to do the same.”
Throngs of PSG fans on Tuesday gathered at Le Bourget Airport in Paris to welcome Messi, who was wearing a T-shirt featuring “Ici c’est Paris” – “This is Paris” upon his arrival.
The words are a long-familiar refrain from a favoured fan chant at Parc des Princes stadium, where Messi is to be presented to them before kick-off of Saturday night’s game against Strasbourg.
Such was the fervour of his arrival that police had to push back to stop metal barriers from toppling over at the airport as fans surged forward to get a better view.
He then travelled into Paris with a police escort.
As disbelief at landing one of soccer’s all-time greats turned to sheer enthusiasm, many gathered for a glimpse of Messi at the stadium.
They got their wish as the smiling superstar briefly waved to them before he underwent a medical check.
He is expected to attend a press conference on Wednesday.
Earlier, Messi’s father and agent, Jorge, had confirmed his son was moving to PSG in a brief exchange with reporters at Barcelona airport before they flew out for France on Tuesday.
PSG supporters have seen their club transformed over the last decade since the influx of Qatari sovereign wealth investment.
Once Messi’s Barcelona contract expired – and the Catalan club was unable to afford to keep him – PSG was one of the few clubs that could finance a deal to sign him.
Messi’s arrival gives PSG formidable attacking options as he links up with France World Cup winner Kylian Mbappe and Brazil forward Neymar.
“Back together,” Neymar posted on Instagram over a video of them hugging, playing for Barcelona.
Messi became the most desired free agent in football history after his attempts to stay at Barcelona were rejected last week by the Spanish league because the salary would not comply with financial regulations, with the Catalan club burdened by debts of more than 1.2 billion euros ($A1.6 billion).
PSG will be hoping not only that Messi helps the team regain the French title it lost to Lille last season, but finally win the Champions League.
The transfer makes PSG potentially the greatest club side ever assembled – after they added several other stars to the list this season including Italian goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma and ex-Liverpool midfielder Gigi Wijnaldum
Not everyone is convinced it’s a great move for the game, and the Independent’s football writer Miguel Delany was among those most scathing.
Messi to PSG is a terrible thing for football, and a terrible reflection of where football is
The orgy of excitement about it is last days of Rome stuffhttps://t.co/0BnXPIi3D2
— Miguel Delaney (@MiguelDelaney) August 10, 2021
“If Lionel Messi’s departure from Barcelona was genuinely sad for him, his arrival at Paris Saint-Germain is just depressing for the game.” Delaney wrote.
“It is another development in this saga that completely articulates the absurdity of football’s modern finances, and the lack of competitive balance that is destroying the core of the sport.
“The constant counter-argument is that PSG are one of a limited number of choices, because few others can afford him. That is precisely the problem and why it is so depressing. It isn’t some coincidence.
“It comes from a decades-long absence of regulation in football, that allowed some clubs to inflate to such a size that the prospect became attractive to some of the questionable states in the world as sports projects.”
© AAP
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