Former Barcelona forward Rivaldo believes that the club’s supporters will not criticize Lionel Messi if he ends up staying at the Camp Nou.
Lionel Messi could be headed for a Barca exit but in a more realistic scenario, he could remain at the Camp Nou.
Talks of a possible departure this summer continue to dominate the headlines.
It’s more than a week since Messi sent Barca his transfer request that has put the club in a tight situation.
Of course, the Catalan giants maintain that the 33-year-old has no clause whatsoever that allows him to leave the club for free. The time-frame for that to count as valid has elapsed already.
It could mean any interested party might have to pay Barca Messi’s €700m release clause in full. In reality, that might be somewhat impossible.
All of that alongside La Liga’s stance in support of Barcelona means La Pulga could end up staying at the Camp Nou.
His relationship with fans might now be strained a bit but Rivaldo insists the Argentine will get no boos or jeers if he remains at the club.
“If Messi stays, it won’t be a problem because the fans love him and know he is still the player who makes the difference in the team,” Rivaldo told Betfair.
“If he stays and we have fans in the stadiums again, I can’t imagine Barcelona fans whistling him or booing him or something like that.”
Barcelona suffered the worst Champions League defeat in their history when they bowed out of the competition via an 8-2 defeat to Bayern Munich. Rivaldo thinks Messi fully made up his mind to leave the club after that very game.
“Surely Messi said enough after the humiliation,” he added.
“It was the final straw, but the subject is long overdue because he has been taking responsibility for the whole team on his own for too long.”
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