Joan Laporta says Lionel Messi deserves a statue after Barcelona re-election | OneFootball

Joan Laporta, re-elected as Barcelona president until 2031, said Lionel Messi would always be welcome and that the forward merits a tribute match and a statue. According to L'Équipe, he described such honours as meaningful for the club.

Laporta won 68.1% of the vote on Sunday and then addressed the Messi question, with the club icon having scored 672 goals in 778 games from 2004 to 2021. He also faced criticism from rival candidate Victor Font over a strained relationship with Messi, and an accusation by former coach Xavi that he blocked the Argentine's return in 2023, two years after his move to Paris Saint-Germain.

Laporta said Messi can be linked to Barcelona in whatever way he chooses, and that the club's doors remain open whenever he wishes. He noted that only Laszlo Kubala and Johan Cruyff currently have statues at the stadium.

A lawyer and former Catalan politician, Laporta previously led the club from 2003 to 2010. He returned in 2021 and began a restructuring that led to Messi's departure for Paris Saint-Germain.

Messi, 38, has often said he would like to come back towards the end of his career. In November he wrote on social media after visiting the renovated Camp Nou that he misses the place deeply and hopes one day to return, not only to bid farewell as a player, having never had that chance.

Source: L'Équipe