Leo Messi's surprise visit to Camp Nou (made without telling FC Barcelona) reopened the wounds of the traumatic exit of the Argentinian star from his long-time club in the summer of 2021, an exit that seems definitive (Messi has a contract with Inter Miami until 2028, he will be 41 at the time), although the Argentinian said that he hopes "to return someday, and not just to say goodbye as a player, which I never got to do..."
One day later, Sport published an interview with Messi (currently training with his Argentinian squad in Alicante, preparing for a friendly match in Angola on Friday), and he confessed that thought he would finish his career in Europe in Barcelona, instead of PSG, although he also planned to go to Miami.
"After spending my whole life there, I didn't leave the way I imagined, the way I dreamed. I imagined, as I said, playing my entire career in Europe, in Barcelona, and then, yes, coming here [to Miami] like I did, because that was my plan, what I wanted.
"And well, the farewell was a bit strange too, because of the situation, because of everything. But well, I think the fans' affection will always be there, because of what I said, because of everything we've been through."
Paris years "not a nightmare", but he wasn't happy
Messi refers to the two years he spent at Paris Saint-Germain, a brief interlude in his career where he said he "didn't feel happy", although he said in the interview that "while it also seems like Paris was a nightmare, but it wasn't. When I say I didn't have a good time, it's because I wasn't happy with what I was doing and what I love to do—playing football, the day-to-day routine, training, matches—because I just wasn't feeling good.
"But then, honestly, we had a really great experience as a family. The city is spectacular, we enjoyed it. But the truth is, I wasn't happy with what I love to do on a daily basis. And here, yes, we're doing well, we're enjoying the city, our daily life".