This is shocking news. Lionel Messi’s next destination is Saudi Arabia.

On the 9th (hereinafter Korean time), AFP reported urgently that ‘Messi has signed a blockbuster contract with the Saudi club’. An official said, “Messi’s contract has been completed. From next season, Messi will play in the Saudi league.” AFP did not disclose where the club was, but Al-Hilal, where Jang Hyun-soo is playing, is likely. France’s L’Equipe reported the size of Messi’s contract, and said that the annual salary ranged from a minimum of 500 million euros to a maximum of 600 million euros. It is a staggering amount of 872.8 billion won in our money. This is three times the annual salary of Cristiano Ronaldo, who recently wore a Saudi Al Nasr uniform, of 200 million euros. Ronaldo already boasts the world’s highest annual salary, but Messi far surpasses it.

The atmosphere changed rapidly. Spain’s El Chiringuito reported on the 8th that ‘Messi has agreed to a mega deal of 260 million pounds per year with Saudi Arabia’s Al Hilal this summer’. Elchiringito reported that Messi would sign a two-year contract, in 메이저사이트 which case Mess would earn a total of 520 million pounds over two years, about 870.6 billion won in our money. This is an unprecedented amount in sports history. El Chiringuito said Messi could also join Al-Hilal alongside former Barcelona teammates Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba, whose contracts expire at the end of this season. He even added that another Barcelona player could go instead of Alba.

However, there were reports immediately denying this. Mundo Deportivo: ‘Messi denies agreement to go to Saudi Arabia’ The report said it was misinformation. “Messi has not yet decided on a specific plan. No connection has been made with the Saudi side,’ he said. Messi said he wants to stay in Europe. In fact, Messi was more active in the Barcelona comeback. Barcelona also did not hide the fact of negotiations with Messi.

But less than a day later, the shocking news came that they had reached an agreement to go to Saudi Arabia. Paris Saint-Germain have already acknowledged the breakup. AFP reported that when asked about Messi’s trip to Saudi Arabia, a PSG official replied, “If we were going to renew the contract with Messi, we would have done it sooner.” Paris Saint-Germain sought to renew the contract with Messi, whose contract expires at the end of this season, but failed to achieve his will.

After all, Messi’s recent trip to Saudi Arabia was a signal for a contract. Messi recently visited Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Messi, a public relations ambassador for the Saudi Tourism Board, was to fulfill his contractual obligations with the Saudi Tourism Board. Messi enjoyed a trip to Saudi Arabia with his family and posted pictures on social media. Messi is known to receive £25 million a year from the Saudi Tourism Board. However, Messi went without permission from the club. Angered Par Saint-Germain issued a two-week suspension. I couldn’t even go to team training, and I was even fined. Messi protested that he had obtained the club’s consent, but fans protested in front of the club and showed dissatisfaction with Messi. Messi eventually apologized through his SNS, and Paris Saint-Germain returned Messi to the training ground faster than expected.

There was speculation that Messi’s sudden trip to Saudi Arabia was connected to rumors of a transfer to Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia wanted Messi from before. Recently, Saudi Arabia, which has been at the center of the issue with Ronaldo, is showing an active movement to host the World Cup. Saudi Arabia took over Newcastle United of the English Premier League with the Saudi sovereign wealth fund, and even embraced Ronaldo. Then he pushed for Messi. Messi is the pinnacle of Vision 2030 that Saudi Arabia is pursuing. Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, dubbed ‘Mr. Everything’, wants to raise his international status around sports. Once again, sovereign wealth funds have stepped in. AFP said, ‘Messi and Ronaldo are both funded by Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund, the world’s largest sovereign wealth fund. It is Saudi Arabia, not the club, that is taking Messi.

Even at first, Messi’s return to Barcelona was likely. Messi wanted to end his playing career at Barcelona, ​​where he had been playing for 19 years since his childhood. Messi failed to renew his contract in the summer of 2021 and transferred to Paris Saint-Germain. He also renewed his contract at the time, but was forced to leave due to Barcelona’s financial difficulties. Messi did not look very happy at Paris Saint-Germain. Messi lifted the league championship cup due to frequent injuries and adaptation, but did not perform as well as expected. Messi has 31 goals and 34 assists in 71 appearances since his move to Paris Saint-Germain. He was criticized for focusing on his national team. Messi succeeded in solving the last puzzle by winning the World Cup in Qatar.

Paris Saint-Germain tried to renew the contract saying they would catch Messi unconditionally, but Messi showed a lukewarm attitude. Paris Saint-Germain’s thoughts have also changed. According to the BBC, Paris Saint-Germain is known to have conveyed its intention to focus on nurturing young players to Messi’s father, Jorge Messi, as an agent. Messi continues negotiations with Barcelona. Barcelona vice-president Rafael Just revealed in March that he was in contact with Messi for his return. Even the specific salary was disclosed. Many people asked for Messi’s return. Both Messi and Barcelona want a reunion, but the issue has been the ransom. Negotiations didn’t work out because of Messi’s astronomical ransom.

The gap was exploited by Saudi Arabia. Just as he did with Ronaldo, he managed to seduce Messi with a lot of money. Initially, Messi said he would not go to Saudi Arabia for the Ballon d’Or and the European Champions League, but it seems that he changed his mind due to Saudi Arabia’s constant love calls. However, it is still not confirmed. Rudy Galetti, who worked for Italy’s ‘Calcio Mercato’, said on his SNS that ‘Saudi Arabia is confident in signing Messi, but it is not a ‘dawn deal’ as it is known. A verbal agreement was reached, but Messi reportedly asked for time. It is likely to be the last attempt to return to Barcelona. However, as Saudi Arabia has already made a huge offer, Barcelona has to offer an equivalent amount, but it is true that it is not easy. Barcelona are still struggling financially.

As Messi plays in Saudi Arabia, the ‘Meho War’ with Ronaldo, the ‘eternal rival’, is expected to revive. Ronaldo is already on the Saudi stage. There are reports that Ronaldo is disillusioned with the Saudi stage recently, and a return to Real Madrid is being discussed, but few European teams want Ronaldo as a player. Ronaldo, who is approaching his retirement, is unlikely to give up a large sum and return to Europe. Ronaldo has a contract with Al Nasr until next year. The Saudi Professional League, in which 16 teams compete, is a two-round full league, with a total of 30 games each. Unless Messi moves to Al Nasr, he will face Ronaldo twice in the regular league. If you add cup competitions such as the King’s Cup and the Super Cup, you may face more than four times. The meho war, which came to a halt when Ronaldo left for Juventus from Real Madrid, is surprisingly likely to unfold in Saudi Arabia, not Europe.