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Tearful Lionel Messi gets standing ovation as he says goodbye to Barcelona

:Headline: Tearful Lionel Messi gets standing ovation as he says goodbye to Barcelona:
The Argentinian playmaker says he never imagined having to bid farewell to the club.
Sports Mole

An emotional Lionel Messi has revealed he expected to extend his stay at Barcelona.

It was announced on Thursday the six-time Ballon d'Or winner would not sign a new contract with his boyhood club, with president Joan Laporta saying a day later that the former regime at Barca in addition to LaLiga spending rules had thwarted any hopes of the Argentinian staying in Catalonia.

Speaking at his farewell press conference on Sunday morning, a tearful Messi got a standing ovation after speaking.

He said: "This year, my family and I were convinced we were going to stay at home, that's what we all wanted more than anything.

"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."

The 34-year-old, who has been heavily linked with a move to Paris St Germain, had been set to remain at the Nou Camp but is now a free agent.

He added: "I did everything possible and the club, 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 appears the most likely next destination for Messi and while he confirmed that joining the French giants was a possibility, he insisted nothing was yet agreed.

He said: "That's honestly one possibility, to reach those heights, but I've got nothing confirmed with anybody.

"When the press release was published, I had a lot of calls and a lot of clubs were interested.

"At the moment, I've not got anything closed, but we are talking about a lot of things."

Messi would be reunited with former Barca team-mate Neymar at PSG (Adam Davy.PA)

Messi confirmed he had agreed to take a 50 per cent wage cut during negotiations over a new deal.

He said: "I offered to reduce my salary by 50 per cent and they didn't ask me for anything else.

"The news that I'd asked for 30 per cent more is a lie. We did everything we could and it wasn't possible."

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Premier League Table
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Barcelona12110140112933
2Real Madrid1173121111024
3Atletico MadridAtletico126511871123
4Villarreal116322019121
5Osasuna126331716121
6Athletic Bilbao125431812619
7Real BetisBetis125431210219
8Mallorca12534109118
9Rayo Vallecano114431210216
10Celta Vigo125161820-216
11Real Sociedad124351010015
12GironaGirona124351517-215
13Sevilla124351217-515
14AlavesAlaves124171419-513
15Leganes122551216-411
16Getafe12174810-210
17Espanyol123181122-1110
18Las PalmasLas Palmas122371321-89
19Real ValladolidValladolid12228924-158
20Valencia11146817-97
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