The potential arrival of Lionel Messi at Al-Hilal, a team in the Saudi Pro League, has created apprehension among some of the current players, who are concerned about losing their positions in the team.
The widely acclaimed seven-time Ballon d’Or winner has been strongly linked with a move to Saudi Arabia after declining an opportunity to extend his contract with Paris Saint-Germain.
As per Sportskeeda, Ali Al-Bulayhi, a prominent player at Al-Hilal who had a previous altercation with Messi during the World Cup, is worried that Messi might include him among the players he prefers not to work with, should Messi join the club.
“I do not know what will happen, and I am afraid that he says, ‘I do not want number five.’ I do not know if Messi will come or not, but if he comes, may God protect me! If he comes, God willing, I will not attend the first two days until I monitor the situation from afar so that he may forget me.”
Messi has been offered a whopping €500 million annual deal to join this summer, although Barcelona are also bidding to convince the Argentine to return to Camp Nou.
Xavi unsure of Messi’s return
Meanwhile, Xavi is unsure whether Lionel Messi will return to Barcelona this summer but has admitted the decision lies firmly with the seven-time Ballon d’Or winner, 90MIN reports.
The newly crowned La Liga champions are hugely confident of returning the World Cup winner to Camp Nou, even in the face of interest from Al Hilal, who offered Messi a whopping €500 million annual deal.
arcelona recently had their viability plan to sign Messi this summer approved by La Liga as the Catalan club intends to proceed with its quest to bring Messi back to the club.
Lewandowski makes strong Messi confession
Earlier, Sports Brief reported Robert Lewandowski has recently made a resounding statement expressing his fervent wish for Lionel Messi to make a fairytale return to Barcelona.
Messi departed Barca in 2021 due to the club’s ailing financial situation, joining Paris Saint-Germain on a two-year contract in the process.
But with his current PSG deal expiring in the summer, the seven-time Ballon d’Or winner has been urged to make a return to his ‘spiritual home.’