Messi votes as Barcelona choose next president

Lionel Messi voted on Sunday as Barcelona members went to the polls to decide on a brand new president, with the ahead’s future one of many main points that wants resolving on the membership.

Messi, 33, is out of contract in June and, after making an attempt to go away Camp Nou final summer time, one of many first duties going through the incoming president is to persuade him to signal a brand new deal.

Joan Laporta, Victor Font and Toni Freixa are the three candidates. Messi has not publicly supported any of them, however Laporta has repeatedly claimed that he’s the best-placed to maintain the six-time World Participant of the Yr.

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Laporta was beforehand Barca president between 2003 and 2010, coinciding with Messi’s development into the primary group and the six-trophy yr underneath Pep Guardiola in 2009.

Font and Freixa have each expressed their confidence in retaining Messi if they’re elected, too.

A successor for Josep Maria Bartomeu, who resigned in October, shall be introduced formally at 11.30 p.m. CET, with greater than 100,000 membership members eligible to vote. Voting is normally is restricted to Camp Nou however, because of the coronavirus restrictions, six polling stations have been arrange throughout Catalonia and Andorra, with postal voting additionally included for the primary time.

Along with Messi, Sergio Busquets additionally solid his vote on Sunday, with sources confirming to ESPN that Gerard Pique is among the many different first-team gamers due to participate within the election.

Along with opening talks with Messi over a brand new deal, with Paris Saint-Germain and Manchester City among the many golf equipment eager to signal him, the brand new president may also must cope with the membership’s monetary issues, with gross debt rising to €1.2 billion over the past yr.

A choice on the Espai Barca venture, which incorporates the renovation of Camp Nou, additionally must be made, with work frozen on the €825 million venture.

On the pitch, an overhaul of an ageing squad began final summer time however there are nonetheless large selections to be made as Barca look to bounce again from a primary trophy-less season since 2007-08.