Former Barcelona star Kevin-Prince Boateng has shared how Lionel Messi had the power to block his shock transfer to the Catalan club. Recall that the Blaugrana signed the striker from Sassuolo in January 2019, initially on loan with an €8 million option to buy.
According to him, the transfer only went ahead after Messi gave his blessing, and if the Argentine maestro had said no, he would never have played for Barcelona.
Boateng added that he was shocked to find out that the club’s sporting directors, president and coach didn’t have the final say on his transfer.
His words, “If Messi had said no, the transfer wouldn’t have happened.
At the time, there were two sporting directors. One of them was Eric Abidal, and he said, ‘Yes, we want you.’ The other sporting director said, ‘We want you’.
The president (Bartomeu) wanted me, the coach (Valverde) too, so I said, ‘Perfect, let’s sign tomorrow!’
They replied, ‘No, we have to talk to Leo first.’ He had that power. I went to sleep hoping Messi would approve my signing. If he had refused, I wouldn’t have signed for Barcelona.”
WOW.
Futbol Club Barcelona is a professional football club based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, that competes in La Liga, the top flight of Spanish football.
Founded in 1899 by a group of Swiss, Catalan, German, and English footballers led by Joan Gamper, the club has become a symbol of Catalan culture and Catalanism, hence the motto “Més que un club” (“More than a club”). Unlike many other football clubs, the supporters own and operate Barcelona. It is the third-most valuable sports team in the world, worth $5.51 billion, and the world’s fourth richest football club in terms of revenue, with an annual turnover of €582.1 million.
The official Barcelona anthem is the “Cant del Barça”, written by Jaume Picas and Josep Maria Espinàs. Barcelona traditionally play in dark shades of blue and garnet stripes, hence nicknamed Blaugrana.
In March 2021, Lionel Messi overtook Xavi’s record of 767 games played for the club, and presently has made 778 official appearances in all competitions, while also holding the record for the most appearances in La Liga matches for Barcelona, with 520.
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