Barcelona fans are still mourning the departure of Lionel Messi as he abruptly left for PSG due to financial instability at Camp Nou. Club president Joan Laporta spoke out on the situation and made it clear that even with Antoine Griezmann going on loan to Atletico, Barca still wouldn't have been able to keep Messi. Via Goal:
“There is objective data. Everyone can compare it. We were pressured that we would either sign the CVC loan [deal] or there is no fair play.
“There was no margin. There was a pre-agreement [with Messi] and we had shaken hands. There were several agreements and La Liga seemed to accept it, but then they said no without CVC. We didn't think that the situation was going to improve and we put an end to it.
“Messi could not have stayed at Barcelona even with Griezmann's [departure] and with the salary reduction of the captains. But it is important that we have lowered the salary cap because next year we can be more ambitious.
As you can see, Barcelona was in absolute turmoil financially. There was simply no way Messi could've remained with the La Liga giants. Laporta also discussed how weird it's felt to see the legend in a different jersey:
“I think we were both sad because the situation was not what we wanted. I have not spoken with Messi since. I saw his debut with PSG and it was strange to see him at another team, rivals. I did not like seeing him in another shirt.”
Nevertheless, Barcelona is looking ahead to the future. There are still many exciting young players within the squad that will be looking to prove themselves. With the likes of Jordi Alba and Gerard Pique taking pay cuts, it allows the club to keep building as they aim to get back to prominence in the post-Messi era.