Emiliano Martinez, Lionel Messi’s international teammate, has encouraged him to join Aston Villa after he leaves Paris Saint-Germain at the end of his contract in June. Martinez jokingly stated that he would accept a wage reduction so that the experienced forward can join him as a teammate at Villa Park.
Messi is expected to leave PSG this summer, following the team’s recent poor performance and fans’ dissatisfaction with his game. The football star is unlikely to return to his former club Barcelona because of their financial problems. As a result, Messi is free to decide which team he will play for next season.
Argentinian goalkeeper Martinez, who won the World Cup with Messi, wants to attract his good friend to Midlands this summer. “If they are whistling Messi, I would bring him here… at Villa,” Martinez told ESPN Argentina. “Hey, man, we’ll drink mate, we eat asados every week. I will cut my salary, we’ll do our best [to sign him].”
Although Aston Villa fans would love Messi to join their team, his demand for a high salary would far exceed the team’s pay structure. Moreover, Al-Hilal in Saudi Arabia has offered him an extraordinary £434m salary for a single year if he joins Cristiano Ronaldo.
However, Messi’s father Jorge has dismissed these allegations, stating that a decision regarding the seven-time Ballon d’Or winner’s future will be made after PSG completes the Ligue 1.
Barcelona intends to bring Messi back to Camp Nou after Rafa Yuste, the club’s vice president, announced that it is up to Messi to decide where he wants to play. Nonetheless, Barcelona will require sales and wage decreases of about £217m to meet La Liga’s salary limits.
Villa fans may dream of witnessing one of football’s all-time greats wearing their claret and blue colours, but a chance to return to Barcelona seems more likely.