Jorge Mas Confirms: No Loan Return for Messi at FC Barcelona

Lionel Messi’s highly anticipated return to FC Barcelona on loan in the winter has been put to rest, as Inter Miami co-owner Jorge Mas confirmed during a podcast appearance. Instead of waiting for Barcelona to resolve their financial issues, Messi made a surprising move by choosing to join Inter Miami, turning down a staggering offer of €500 million ($552 million) a season from Al-Hilal in Saudi Arabia. The decision proved beneficial, as the Argentine star has already netted three goals in just two appearances for his new MLS team.

With the MLS season concluding in October and resuming late February, there were speculations about the possibility of Messi returning to Barcelona on loan to stay in top form. Such temporary assignments have been done before by players like Thierry Henry and David Beckham. However, Jorge Mas dismissed this notion, stating that a loan back to Barcelona is not on the cards for Messi.

Instead, Mas pondered on how Messi’s Camp Nou return might happen and hinted at the possibility of a farewell fixture, possibly involving the Joan Gamper trophy, which Barcelona holds every August. Mas expressed his commitment to ensuring that Messi gets a proper goodbye at Camp Nou when the new stadium is ready for use, as Barcelona’s current stadium would not be in use for the next year and a half.

Messi’s move to Inter Miami has been lucrative, with a two-year contract paying him between $50-60 million a season, as disclosed by Mas in a recent interview. Despite his exceptional form, the 38-year-old maestro has ruled himself out of aiding Argentina in defending their World Cup title during the tournament in the US, Canada, and Mexico in 2026.

As Messi’s career unfolds, there is speculation that his future might lie closer to home. A potential return to his beloved hometown club Newell’s Old Boys in Rosario seems more likely than donning the iconic Barca number 10 shirt again to mark the end of his illustrious and storied career.