Lionel Messi and Paris Saint-Germain have formally agreed a deal which will see the Argentinean superstar join the French giants on a lucrative two-year contract, according to multiple sources.
The world of football was stunned last week when it was announced that Messi would not be signing a new contract with his beloved Barcelona due to La Liga regulations.
It meant the 34-year-old remained a free agent, but PSG did not take long to make their move, with their manager Mauricio Pochettino allegedly phoning his fellow countryman on Thursday evening to try to convince him of a switch to Parc des Princes.
After a weekend of negotiation it appears that Messi has now accepted the contract proposals, and according to The Athletic the six-time Ballon d'Or winner will earn a whopping annual salary of €25m (£21.5m), with the deal lasting until 2023 but with the option of a one-year extension at the same rate.
Messi will also receive a €25m sign-on fee, and the move is expected to be confirmed in the next couple of days.
It is a transfer which will send shockwaves around the world, and will surely make PSG the hot favourites to win the Champions League this season.
They will be able to select a fearsome front three of Neymar, Messi and Kylian Mbappe, and have already strengthened their squad this summer with the additions of the likes of Gini Wijnaldum, Sergio Ramos and Gianluigi Donnarumma.
There were some suggestions that Barcelona made a desperate late move to try to keep Messi late on Monday night.
But it seems that it was all too little too late, and Messi will now play his club football at a side other than Barcelona for the first time in his career.
Messi was left in tears at his farewell press conference at the Nou Camp as he admitted he was devastated to be leaving.
“This year, my family and I were convinced we were going to stay at home, that’s what we all wanted more than anything,” he said.
“We’d always made this our own, we were at home. We thought we would be staying here in Barcelona. But today, we have to say goodbye to all of this.
“I did everything possible and the club, (president Joan) Laporta, they couldn’t do it because of LaLiga.
“I’ve heard things said about me, that I didn’t want to continue, but on my life, we did everything we could because I wanted to stay.
“Last year, I didn’t want to stay and I said it; this year, I wanted to stay and we couldn’t.”
PSG won their first match of the Ligue 1 season 2-1 against Troyes on Saturday, and it remains to be seen whether Messi will be signed and registered in time to make his debut in a home match against Strasbourg on Saturday.
