Barcelona coach Xavi will ‘100 percent welcome’ Lionel Messi’s return this summer after confirming his imminent departure from Paris Saint-Germain.

The seven-time Ballon d’Or winner will make his final appearance for the club in their final Ligue 1 game of the campaign against Clermont on Saturday.

The 35-year-old’s departure after two years with PSG has been long anticipated and it was officially announced by Galtier during Thursday’s press conference.

Galtier said: “I can confirm that I have had the honor of coaching the best football player ever, Leo Messi.

‘Saturday will be his last game at the Parc des Princes. I hope he will be greeted in the best possible way.’

Galtier added: “He was always available, always in training sessions.

‘Despite the comments or criticism that I don’t think is justified at all, he has always served the team, as an assist and scorer.

‘He’s 35 years old and has a World Cup in the middle of the season. His stats are out of the World Cup, correct me if I’m wrong, but I think he’s on 21 goals and 22 assists, meaning he has (contributed) 43 times this season. this prize.’

Messi left Barcelona for PSG amid the Catalan club’s financial crisis in 2021. The Argentinian World Cup champion helped the Paris team win two Ligue 1 titles but defied some Statistically impressive this season, his relationship with the club seems to have soured.

Last month, he was suspended for two weeks after making an unauthorized trip to Saudi Arabia.

Since then, he has been linked with a move to the Middle Eastern country, as well as the United States, and a return to Barcelona in the future.

Talking about the possibility of returning to Camp Nou, Xavi, Messi’s former teammate said: “Leo Messi will decide his future next week. He has 100% consent to join us.

‘He knows we’re ready to welcome him. Nothing has changed, we have a chance. We want Leo here. Let him decide. I’m willing to put him in our system.’