Two burofaxes, and one huge disaster for Futbol Club Barcelona. First, Leo Messi told the club he intended to leave and that his contract permitted him to, sending the message via burofax to make it verifiable, as is common practice in Spain. Then, Barça responded to Leo Messi with another burofax and asked him to stay at the Barça club and finish his sporting career at the Camp Nou. A response that demonstrates, once again, the poor management of the club board chaired by Josep Maria Bartomeu.
Leo Messi after the 2-8 Champions' League defeat to Bayern / EFE
After the hammering the team received from Bayern Munich, many voices called for Bartomeu's resignation, but the embattled president chose not to bring forward presidential elections and instead, to see out his term until 2021. A decision that was the last straw for Messi. Today, the sad news that the Argentinian star intends to leave the Camp Nou.
Former Barça player and commentator Gary Lineker has published a tweet in which he asks the club to try and stop it from getting ugly.
If Messi is to leave @FCBarcelona by activating a release clause, then I hope the club try to help, not hinder him. He’s been fiercely loyal and their greatest ever player. It would be terribly sad if it finished with a fight between the player and the club.
— Gary Lineker (@GaryLineker) August 25, 2020