He officially became a free agent when his previous deal expired on 1 July, but it was still widely anticipated he would stay. However, Barcelona confirmed last week that Messi would be leaving the club because of "financial and structural obstacles".

In the summer of 2020, with one year left on his four-year, $675-million Barcelona contract, Messi went public about his desire to leave, citing a falling out with club management and a clause in his contract that he believed allowed him to depart.

Why did Lionel Messi leave Barcelona in 2021? To put things forth in the simplest terms, Barcelona simply couldn’t afford to keep Messi in the team any longer as their wage budget wasn’t enough to accommodate the Argentine superstar.