Al-Khelaifi bids farewell to Messi and praises his career with PSG

Nasser al-Khelaifi, the president of PSG, expressed his gratitude to Lionel Messi for his valuable contributions during his two seasons with the club. Al-Khelaifi acknowledged his role in motivating the younger players and praised his instrumental role in securing back-to-back Ligue 1 championships for the team at the Rouge & Bleu and Parc des Princes.  Messi bid farewell to PSG on Saturday, as the team suffered a 3-2 loss to Clermont Foot. After the conclusion of the 2022-23 season, Messi’s journey with PSG will reach its end.  “I would like to thank the club, the city of Paris, and its people for these two years. I wish you all the best for the future,” Messi told the club website. In two seasons at PSG, Messi won two French leagues and the French Champions Trophy and notched 32 goals and 35 assists in all competitions. Nasser Al-Khelaifi, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Paris Saint-Germain, expressed his gratitude for Messi. He added, "Seeing the winner of seven Ballon d'Or awards in the red and blue colors and in the Parc des Princes, achieving two consecutive French championships and inspiring our young players, was a pleasure." He concluded his remarks by saying, "His (Messi's) contributions to Paris Saint-Germain and the French League cannot be underestimated, and we wish Leo and his family all the best for the future." According to a previous report published by the Spanish newspaper "Sport", there are 3 options on Lionel Messi's table, which are Al Hilal Saudi Arabia, Inter Miami, and his former club, Barcelona, Spain, who wants to return him. The past few days have witnessed frequent press reports stating that the Argentine has agreed to Al Hilal’s offer, which extends for two years and has a total value of 1.2 billion euros, with a huge annual salary for the Argentine star that will amount to 600 million euros, which is equivalent to about 3 times what Portuguese star Cristiano Ronaldo earns with victory. A reliable source close to him has claimed that he has received a formal offer from Al-Hilal, a Saudi Arabian club, to play for them in the upcoming season. In addition to Al-Hilal, there have been speculations about a potential move to Inter Miami or a return to Barcelona for Messi. Messi joined Paris Saint-Germain at the beginning of the 2021-2022 season, as the number of his goals with the French team has so far reached 32 goals in 74 matches in all tournaments, and he also provided 35 assists.