Xavi reveals the person who prevented Messi's return to Barcelona

Former coach Xavi caused a shock by revealing that Lionel Messi was very close to returning to Barcelona in 2023, but the plan collapsed at the last minute because President Joan Laporta decided to block the deal.

Former Barcelona coach, Xavi Hernandez, recently caused a shock by revealing that the deal to bring Lionel Messi back to Nou Camp in 2023 was practically completed. However, this plan was blocked at the last minute by Club President Joan Laporta.

In an interview with La Vanguardia ahead of Barcelona's presidential election, Xavi stated that he contacted Messi immediately after the Argentine superstar won the 2022 World Cup with the Argentina national team. According to the legendary former midfielder, Messi was very enthusiastic about the prospect of returning to Catalonia to end his career wearing the colors of his former club.

Xavi even discussed with Messi's father, Jorge Messi about a "final dance," similar to how basketball legend Michael Jordan ended his career with the Chicago Bulls. The Spanish coach confirmed that discussions took place over many months and everything was almost finalized.

“In January 2023, after the World Cup, we contacted Leo and he was very eager to return. We talked until March. I said that once Leo agreed, I would inform the president. Professionally, it was a fantastic deal,” Xavi shared.

According to Xavi, Barcelona initially received approval from La Liga to proceed with the deal. However, Laporta suddenly halted the entire negotiation process for personal reasons: “The president himself canceled everything. He said if Leo returned, he would have to ‘declare war’ and could not allow that to happen,” Xavi revealed.

After the plan collapsed, Messi stopped responding to Xavi's calls. This severely affected the relationship between the two Barcelona legends for a period: “Leo once thought I was part of that story. There was a time when we couldn't talk to each other. Fortunately, everything is fine now”, Xavi admitted.

Ultimately, Messi left Paris Saint-Germain upon contract expiration and joined Inter Miami in Major League Soccer in the summer of 2023. Xavi also believes the likelihood of Messi returning to Barcelona in the near future is very low. According to him, the reason is not financial issues or demands from Messi's family, but simply because Laporta did not want that deal to happen.