When Lionel Messi finally left Barcelona, there was a romantic notion that he would return to Argentina and play for Newell’s Old Boys, the team he grew up supporting.
PSG, a club transformed by Qatar’s unfathomable state wealth, is a far less romantic destination for the player Barca fans believed would never play for anyone else.
Messi, on the other hand, will be presented as a Parisian player on Wednesday, signing a two-year contract with an option for a third.
Messi, at the age of 34, did not want to leave the Camp Nou, at least not in the way he did.
He had agreed to a new five-year contract, but the cash-strapped Catalans were unable to implement it. PSG is capable of doing so.
Even though he has never won the World Cup and won the last of his four Champions Leagues in 2015, Messi is undoubtedly the greatest of all time.
PSG and its Qatari owners care only about winning that tournament, which is why Messi is reportedly paid 35 million euros ($41 million) per year.
Barcelona had already blown their budget to keep Messi, but they had known from the time he arrived from his hometown of Rosario at the age of 13 how unique a player they had on their hands.
