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Barcelona president Joan Laporta said it would be fitting for Lionel Messi‘s tribute to coincide with the official opening of the revamped Spotify Camp Nou stadium.
Since Messi left Barca as a free agent in August 2021 due to the club’s financial crisis, there has been talk of a tribute match to honour the Argentina captain.
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“I agreed with them [Messi’s family] to pay tribute [to Messi],” Laporta said when asked about a Messi tribute. “The opening day of the Spotify Camp Nou would be an excellent date.”
Barca plan to return to the new Camp Nou stadium for the 2024-25 season but using 50% capacity while the renovation is still under way. Construction is planned to finish during the 2025-26 campaign.
The 36-year-old had considered a return to the LaLiga club this summer but announced he would join Inter Miami once his contract with Paris Saint-Germain expired on June 30.
His father and agent, Jorge Messi, personally met with Laporta in Barcelona earlier this month to inform him of the player’s decision.
“Messi wanted to return to Barca,” Laporta said. “He had a very hard spell in Paris. His father [Jorge] told me that he didn’t want to have this pressure. The Catalans respect him. May he do very well in Miami. Barca will always be his home.”
Messi was booed and jeered by PSG fans following the team’s exits from the Champions League over the last two seasons.
During his 21 years at Barca, Messi became the club’s record appearance holder and top scorer, scoring 672 times in 778 games. He won four Champions Leagues, 11 LaLiga titles and was won the Ballon d’Or on seven occasions
A 2022 World Cup winner with Argentina, Messi, 36, recently said he is looking forward to playing in the Major League Soccer.
“We’re happy with the decision we have taken,” Messi said earlier this month. “I’m ready and eager to face this new challenge, this change.”