Lionel Messi: 'I don't know where I will be next year'

Messi’s future at Barcelona has been the subject of fevered speculation following reports of a crisis at Barca and a falling out with coach Luis Enrique.

Messi rejected speculation linking him with a move to Chelsea or Manchester City in forthright terms in an interview with Barcelona’s TV channel on Sunday.

But speaking a day later, during a press conference prior to the FIFA Ballon d’Or gala on Monday evening, he was rather less determined to commit his future to the club.

“I’m not sure what’s going to happen, whether I’ll go back to Newell’s,” he said in response to a question about whether he might return to Argentina at some point in his career.

“I’m not sure where I will be next year. In the football world so many things can change overnight.

“I’ve always said I will end my career at Barcelona, but as Cristiano [Ronaldo] says only God knows the future.”

You could interpret this as a stock answer given in a very bland press conference but it is not a huge leap to imagine that Messi knows exactly how such words will be interpreted. Without anything too dramatic, he has applied a bit of gentle pressure to Barcelona and encouraged the transfer speculation to increase. Certainly he struck a very different tone to that employed on Barca's club channels.