Lionel Scaloni will continue to call on Lionel Messi if he opts for a transfer to Saudi Arabia, the Argentine national coach says in conversation with the Arab medium Al Kass. Even if he leaves Europe, Messi will be part of it for as long as he wants la Albiceleste. The star player of Paris Saint-Germain can therefore succumb to the very lucrative offer of Al-Hilal without consequences. Messi’s contract expires in Paris at the end of next month, after which he can look for a new challenge on a free transfer.
Messi and his teammates managed to win their first world title since 1986 in December under the leadership of Scaloni. With this, the 35-year-old left leg made himself immortal with the Argentinian population, but also with the national coach. Scaloni expresses his unconditional support for Messi. “The move will not affect our national team as long as Messi is happy to join us,” Scaloni said when asked, after previous rumors suggesting otherwise.
The seven-time winner of the Ballon d’Or therefore does not have to worry about his place in the Argentinian selection. Messi is currently 174 games ahead la Albiceleste, in which he accounted for 102 goals and 56 assists. The Rosario-born attacker is still captain of Argentina. With his country, Messi also won an Olympic medal (2009) and the Copa América (2021) in addition to the 2022 World Cup. In 2005, the Barcelona club legend also managed to seize the Under 20 World Cup, which was played in the Netherlands.
On Tuesday, Messi’s management issued a statement after the French press agency AFP had made a final notification of his transfer to Saudi Arabia. According to father Jorge Messi, the rumors about an oral agreement are nonsense. “We will not make a decision until after this season. There are always rumors and many use Lionel’s name to generate fame, but there is only one truth and that is that nothing is happening right now. There is no verbal agreement and nothing has been signed at all. We will only consider after this season.” Messi could earn around four hundred million euros in Saudi Arabia on an annual basis. Nearly doubling Cristiano Ronaldo’s annual income at arch-rival Al-Nassr.
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