Lionel Messi lifted the lid on his exit from Barcelona and said a move to Paris Saint-Germain is "a possibility" at an extraordinary press conference at Camp Nou on Sunday.
The Catalan giants confirmed Messi has left the club in a brief statement on Thursday, despite the fact he was expected to sign a new contract.
Barca president Joan Laporta subsequently declared player and club were keen to extend their 21-year relationship, but La Liga regulations proved to be an insurmountable obstacle.
Messi has since entered talks with Paris Saint-Germain and some reports in France claim he has agreed a deal with the Ligue 1 giants.
During his press conference, Messi struggled to compose himself and was fighting back tears in front of his family and teammates.
He said: "This is really difficult for me after so many years, being here my entire life. I'm not ready for this. This year, my family were convinced we were going to stay here at home.
"We thought we'd be staying here in Barcelona. The time we've had here in the city and in the sport has been amazing.
"Well, today I have to say goodbye to all of this. I've been here so many years, since I was 13. After 21 years, I'm leaving with my wife, with my three little Catalan-Argentine kids.
"I can't say that in a few years we won't come back. I'm just really grateful for everything, all my teammates and all my former teammates, everyone at the club who has been by my side, all the people - some I only met a few times.
"So many beautiful things have happened, also some bad things, but all of this helped me to grow, helped me improve and made me the person I am today.
"I've given everything for this club and this shirt from the first day to the last.
"The truth is I am leaving. I am so grateful for the care people have shown me. I never imagined saying goodbye."
He continued: "I leave this club without seeing the fans for one-and-a-half years. I would have imagined it with Camp Nou full and being able to say goodbye properly."
Messi burst into tears at the end of his statement and took some minutes to prepare for questions from the assembled media.
Asked about his greatest moment in a Barcelona shirt, Messi said it was his "dream come true" to make his senior debut back in 2003.
He also echoed Laporta's claim that he wanted to stay with Barcelona and pinned the blame for his exit on La Liga.
Messi was then quizzed on whether he would join Paris Saint-Germain and responded by saying a move to Mauricio Pochettino's side is "a possibility".
He added: " At the moment nothing is confirmed, I received lot of calls after Barcelona's statement. We’re talking about it."
Messi confessed he is "very sad" about the situation that has unfolded around him, as he was confident he would pen a new multi-year contract with Barcelona.
"The reality is that after elections, I went for lunch with new president and we spoke and after that meal I was convinced that I was going to stay and there would be no problem to do so.
"My contract was never a problem. But it was not possible."
