There remains continued speculation surrounding Lionel Messi’s future and whether that will be at either Manchester City, Paris Saint-Germain or Barcelona.
The Argentinian can have his pick of clubs from January 1, once the transfer window opens for business, as his contract runs out at the end of the season when he will become a free agent.
Never before have Barca been in this position with their greatest ever player, and it opens up the possibility that he will end his career somewhere other than Camp Nou.
Up until six months ago, that would’ve been a situation that no one thought possible, but the continued meddling of then president, Josep Maria Bartomeu, had sent Messi to the brink.
Only a potential court case stopped Messi from executing his desire to leave in the summer and, to his credit, he’s playing as well as he can with a team of mere mortals alongside him.
Both Man City and PSG can offer him an embarrassment of riches, and there is an emotional pull too, with Pep Guardiola at the former and Neymar at the latter.
However, according to Sport, money isn’t a factor and Messi is going to wait to talk to the new president and understand his ideas first before making any decisions.
What that means in practice is that no matter how many column inches are written in the interim, it won’t be until at least the end of January before we know where Messi will play next season.