Argentine football star Lionel Messi arrived in Paris on Tuesday to finalise his transfer to Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) after more than two decades at FC Barcelona.
Wearing a T-shirt declaring “Ici c’est Paris” (This is Paris), Messi waved to the hundreds of fans gathered outside the terminal at Le Bourget airport chanting "Messi! Messi!" to welcome him.
Earlier in the day, sports journals L'Equipe and RMC reported that Messi has agreed a deal with PSG. Asked by reporters at Barcelona's El Prat airport if the Argentine star would be signing with PSG, Messi's father Jorge Messi, who is also his agent, confirmed the news. PSG will hold a press conference at 11am Paris time on Wednesday.
The 34-year-old record goalscorer for both Argentina and Barcelona is considered one of the greatest football players of all time.
The six-time Ballon d'Or winner wept on Sunday as he bade farewell to his boyhood team after the club said it could no longer afford to keep him, blaming La Liga's salary cap rules, even though Messi had agreed to halve his salary.
PSG can easily afford Messi because since 2012 they have been owned by Qatar Sports Investments, an investment vehicle backed by the Middle Eastern absolute monarchy’s vast oil and gas wealth.
“I don’t know what to say,” an emotional Messi told the press conference.
Messi won 35 trophies at Barcelona after joining the club at age 13. His trophy haul includes four Champions League and 10 La Liga titles.
His contract with PSG will last for two years with an option to extend it to three, according to French sports journal L'Equipe. Igor Mladenovic, a specialist in the business of sport, told FRANCE 24 that Messi’s contract is likely to be worth between €35 and €40 million a year.
Messi's arrival is expected to make PSG the even more obvious favourites to reclaim the Ligue 1 title they lost last season to Lille.
The PSG front line is already formidable, with Messi's former Barca teammate Neymar and young France striker Kylian Mbappé seen as two of the best players on the planet.
But the arrival of Messi, Barca's all-time record goalscorer with 682 in 17 years in the first team, will boost the club's ambitions to win a first-ever Champions League.
SOURCE: FRANCE 24/AFP/REUTERS
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