FC Barcelona have three Qatar 2022 World Cup winners on their shortlist of possible signings this summer – including their best ever player Lionel Messi – according to El Nacional.
With his Paris Saint Germain contract set to expire on June 30, Messi has been linked with a possible return to the Camp Nou. In recent weeks, president Joan Laporta has tried to convince La Liga that the cash-strapped Catalans can make the deal work through a viability plan.
Messi has an offer of €350 million ($375.5 million) a year from Al-Hilal which he has already accepted according to El Chiringuitoalthough his father and agent Jorge Messi have denied any deal is in place, as have the Saudi club Mundo Deportivo.
If Barca can manage to steer Messi away from the big money and suit him up again at the Blaugrana, they would of course land the seven-time Ballon d’Or holder on the same kind of free transfer that saw him join PSG in 2021 .
Elsewhere in the market, however, Barca could also sign his Argentine team-mate – and the scorer of the second goal in the Qatar 2022 final, as La Albiceleste beat France – Angel Di Maria for nothing in a similar deal.
According to Relaythere is a “95-98%” chance that the winger will not renew his contract at Juventus and move on at the end of the season, with former club Benfica interested in buying his services.
Rounding out the trio of Argentine world champions is Leandro Paredes. The midfielder is also at Juventus, but on loan from PSG, where he previously shared a dressing room with both Di Maria and Messi in the French capital.
With Paredes not intending to stay in either Italy or France, Barca could sign him as a cheap option if they can’t afford to lure the likes of Martin Zubimendi or Ruben Neves.
The former Boca Juniors star has just 13 months to run on his contract, so his regular Ligue 1 employers could look to cash in what they can before 2023/2024 as opposed to seeing him go without receiving a penny in the end of that campaign.
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