{"id":4723,"date":"2026-09-20T13:14:13","date_gmt":"2026-09-20T13:14:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportbulletin.top\/?p=4723"},"modified":"2026-09-20T13:14:13","modified_gmt":"2026-09-20T13:14:13","slug":"xavi-makes-stunning-claim-over-lionel-messis-failed-barcelona-return-laporta-cancelled-everything","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportbulletin.top\/?p=4723","title":{"rendered":"Xavi makes stunning claim over Lionel Messi\u2019s failed Barcelona return: \u2018Laporta cancelled everything\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"


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Xavi Hernandez is a Barcelona<\/a> legend in every sense of the word, but his tenure as manager left a bittersweet taste in the mouths of everyone involved.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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The Spanish tactician came to the Catalan club as manager at a difficult time and initially did a great job, bringing La Liga<\/a><\/em> back to Bar\u00e7a<\/em>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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However, his final season was marred by difficult results, his inability to handle the exit of key superstars and his falling out with Joan Laporta\u2019s board.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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One of the biggest talking points during Xavi\u2019s tenure was the potential return of Lionel Messi<\/a> after the expiry of his PSG contract.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Messi was genuinely hoping to return to Barcelona after winning the 2022 World Cup, according to Xavi, who has now offered a remarkable account of why the reunion never happened.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Messi was very keen to return<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n
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Speaking on the Prakhat Gupta podcast on YouTube<\/a>, the former Barcelona coach claimed he was personally in contact with Messi for four months and strongly supported bringing the Argentine legend back to the club.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\u201cWe were in contact for four months. Messi was very keen to return to Barcelona, and I was 100 per cent in favour of it,\u201d<\/strong> Xavi said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Lionel Messi wanted to return to Barcelona after lifting the World Cup with Argentina. (Photo by Carl Recine\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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The former Bar\u00e7a<\/em> midfielder suggested the coaching staff were similarly excited by the possibility of working with Messi again.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\u201cMessi himself had a lot of hope, and I and the entire coaching staff were also waiting with great expectations,\u201d<\/strong> Xavi said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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However, according to Xavi\u2019s version of events, the situation changed because of a decision taken by president Joan Laporta.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\u201cBut in the end, president Laporta decided that he did not want to sign Messi again,\u201d<\/strong> Xavi said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\u201cSuddenly the president cancelled everything.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Xavi admits decision was difficult to explain to Messi<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n
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Xavi described the sudden turn of events as both unexpected and personally uncomfortable, particularly because of the conversations he had already held with his former team-mate.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\u201cThis is true and very strange,\u201d<\/strong> he said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\u201cIt was very difficult for me to say to Messi, \u2018We will not do it. We will not do it.’\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Xavi\u2019s account shows just how difficult it felt for him to navigate one of the most emotional transfer stories in Barcelona\u2019s recent history.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Lionel Messi has since gone on to have a great time in the MLS.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Messi\u2019s departure in 2021 had already been painful for supporters, so the possibility of him returning after lifting the World Cup naturally created excitement.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Xavi\u2019s claim that Messi himself had significant hope of coming back makes the eventual collapse of the move even more painful.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

It just was not to be<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n
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For years, when he was setting the stage alight at Bar\u00e7a<\/em>, Messi could not find a way to replicate those performances with Argentina.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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However, it was when he had to leave the Catalan club that he went on to succeed with his national team.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Maybe it just was not meant to be for Bar\u00e7a<\/em> and Messi. The last few years of the Argentine maestro\u2019s career were simply meant to be spent away from the club of his life.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Regardless, Messi has since gone on to join Inter Miami, create new records in MLS and even produce a record-breaking World Cup campaign just this past summer at 39.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Messi will forever be a Bar\u00e7a<\/em> legend irrespective of who he plays for, but Xavi\u2019s quotes offer insight into what happened during a painful summer at the Catalan club.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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