Will another world’s best soccer player head to Asia?
The British media ‘Daily Mail’ reported on the 9th (Korean time) breaking news about Lionel Messi’s (Paris Saint-Germain) departure to Al-Hilal.
Messi, who wore the Paris uniform last 2021, is digesting his second season. He has an option for a one-year extension, but his contract lasts until the season. This is why news related to his future often came out, from rumors of Messi’s contract renewal to rumors of his return to FC Barcelona.
He has recently been rumored to be leaving Paris. This was because the news of the contract renewal was not heard, followed by controversy over the unauthorized absence from training. Messi left for Saudi Arabia without participating in team training after the recent defeat against Lorient. It was because of his pre-contracted ambassadorship.
The Paris club, which is paying a lot of money to Messi, was furious. There were even reports that he would be fined for two weeks and banned from playing.
Eventually, Messi also admitted his mistake and apologized. He explained through his social network service (SNS), “I want to clearly convey my apology to my teammates and the club,” and “Honestly, I thought I would be given a break after the game, as it has been for the past few weeks.”
He said, “I couldn’t do that this time because I had canceled the Saudi schedule before,” and bowed his head, saying, “I apologize for my actions and will wait for the club’s decision.”
The French media ‘France 24’ also reported that the possibility of a breakup increased, saying, “The possibility of Messi staying is lower” due to the incident of not attending training without permission.스포츠토토
Then came the report that Messi’s trip to Saudi Arabia was imminent. ‘Daily Mail’ quoted France’s ‘AFP’ and said, “From next season, Messi will play in Saudi Arabia.” He also affirmed, “The Messi’s contract has already been completed.”
As the world’s best player, the contract size is known to be enormous. The media explained that “Messi will sign a large contract with Al Hilal of Saudi Arabia for 522 million pounds (approximately 872.2 billion won).”
Meanwhile, Al-Hilal is a prestigious family in Saudi Arabia. Including last season, they won the league 8 times and the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Champions League (ACL) 4 times. He is ranked 4th out of 16 teams this season. If Messi is headed to Al Hilal, he will compete in the same league as Cristiano Ronaldo (Al Nasr).