BARCELONA: Lionel Messi began crying before he even started speaking. The most difficult moment of his career had arrived and he wasn’t ready for it.

It was time to say goodbye to Barcelona after more than two decades with the Catalan club.

“I don’t know if I’ll be able to speak,” he said while trying to compose himself during his farewell news conference at the Camp Nou Stadium on Sunday. “It still hasn’t sunk in that I’m leaving this club, that my life will be changing completely. It will be a difficult change for me and especially for my family. But we have to accept it and move on.”

Messi struggled to control his emotions and cried profusely as he stepped up to the podium at the Camp Nou.

“This is very hard for me after so many years, after being here my entire life,” he said. “I wasn’t prepared.”

Messi said that, unlike last year when he asked to leave, he had his mind set on staying with Barcelona and did everything possible to make it happen, including reducing his salary by 50%. He said he was surprised to hear he wouldn’t be able to stay because of the club’s debt and La Liga’s financial fair-play regulations.

Messi’s family and some of his team-mates were at the Camp Nou for the emotional farewell. He was applauded several times by those in the audience.

The 34-year-old Messi avoided speaking specifically about his future, saying he received offers from several clubs after the announcement that he would leave the Catalan club. When asked about Paris St Germain, considered the frontrunner to sign him, Messi admitted it was a possibility.

While he did not confirm he would definitely join the Parisians, he said his plans were to carry on playing as long as possible, adding he still harbours ambitions to win another Champions League trophy.

“At this moment I don’t have a deal with any club,” he said. “As long as I go on being competitive and as long as my body responds [I’ll carry on playing]. As long as I can, I will carry on competing.”

PSG has been in talks over the weekend with Messis team trying to finalise a deal. French newspaper L’Equipe reported on Sunday that he will travel to Paris either Sunday or Monday to undertake a medical and finalise a deal with the Qatar Sports Investment-owned club.

Messi, widely considered the most gifted player in the history of the game, has won 35 trophies at Barca, which he joined as a 13-year-old -- including four Champions Leagues and 10 league titles while his 672 goals are a record for any of the top five European leagues.

“I would’ve liked to have won another Champions League,” said Messi. “I don’t regret anything, I tried to give my best and I’m ending my career here with a good number of titles.”

He said none of the challenges he faced on the field compared to the one of saying goodbye to Barca.

“There were many tough moments, many losses, but in the end you always went back to training and to playing again,” he said. “This is different. There is no going back. This is the end. Now a new story begins.”

Published in Dawn, August 9th, 2021