Barcelona are in 'chaos' after Lionel Messi's comments, but what happens now and could Messi leave?

ByThe Editorial Team

Updated 05/02/2020 at 11:48 GMT

Barcelona have been labelled as “Chaos FC” after Lionel Messi called out sporting director Eric Abidal, but why has Messi spoken out and what does it mean for the future of the club, Abidal and Messi? James Walker-Roberts explains...

What on earth has happened?

All has not been well at Barcelona for a while.

If you’ve just been following their results on the pitch - at least in La Liga, where they have won back-to-back titles over the last two seasons - that might not be obvious.

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But the frustration over their Champions League failures - three quarter-final exits in the last four seasons, including two crushing defeats to Roma and Liverpool - have lingered, and have then been compounded by defeats in the 2019 Copa del Rey final and last month’s Spanish Super Cup.

The squad is star-studded, but less so than it used to be, which owes to the La Masia academy not producing as many top-quality talents as it previously did and a huge failing in the transfer market over the last few seasons.

The shambolic dealings in the transfer market - Philippe Coutinho for £130m, Ousmane Dembele for £112m, Malcom for £36m, etc etc - have, unsurprisingly, led to dissatisfaction with president Josep Maria Bartomeu and the rest of the board.

Messi himself took aim at the Barcelona hierarchy last summer when, asked about the club’s efforts to re-sign Neymar, he said:

I don’t know if the club really tried or not.

Head coach Ernesto Valverde paid the price for Barca's transfer failings, as well as a lack of attacking swagger in the playing style, when he was sacked in January.

Ernesto Valverde was sacked in January

Image credit: Getty Images

Some players were said to be happy with the decision, others not.

Club captain Messi was apparently among those who wanted Valverde to stay and he didn’t take kindly to Abidal calling out the players in an interview with Sport that was published on Tuesday.

“Many players were not satisfied [with Valverde] and nor did they work a lot,” said the ex-Barcelona defender, who also might have annoyed another of his former team-mates Xavi by denying his claim that he had an offer to replace Valverde.

Messi was quick to respond to Abidal’s comments on Instagram, saying "those in charge of sporting direction should also face up to their responsibilities" and "when you talk about players, you have to give names because if not, it gives air to things which are not true."

What happens next?

Needless to say, Messi’s comments have caused shockwaves.

Sport - the paper that got the interview with Abidal - described the situation as a “tsunami”.

While others called it “chaos”, Mundo Deportivo’s headline of “Abidal against Messi”, and a graphic which shows the pair going head to head, surely doesn’t bode well for Abidal.

Less than 24 hours after Messi’s comments there has already been speculation that Abidal is set for talks with Bartomeu and could be facing the sack, with Marca reporting on a minefield of distrust.

"Barcelona are now in a situation wherein nobody trusts anyone, and tension is high," writes Luis Rojo.

Josep Maria Bartomeu doesn't trust Abidal for all that happened this winter, particularly the failure to land Xavi Hernandez or a new forward.

Bartomeu himself might not be in the job for much longer as presidential elections are set to take place next summer.

The same probably applies for recently-appointed head coach Quique Setien, who has only been in the job a matter of weeks and now has a minefield to navigate. He signed a two-year deal when he took over from Valverde but could lose his job if a new president is appointed and wants to bring his own head coach, perhaps Xavi.

What does it mean for Messi?

Like the majority of Barcelona supporters, Messi appears to be frustrated with the way the club is being run and this latest statement is his way of challenging the hierachy.

Although he said it was a “lie” that he wasn’t keen on Barcelona signing Griezmann last summer, he did say he would have “loved” to see Neymar return.

The fact that Barca didn’t bring Neymar back and then, with Luis Suarez injured and Griezmann struggling for form, didn’t sign a striker in January (pulling out of a deal to sign Cedric Bakambu while he was on his way from China to Spain), means it’s all on Messi again to do the heavy lifting.

There is no doubting Messi’s ability to do that, but COPE and Marca have both reported that he is tired of “being a scapegoat” for everything that happens at Barcelona.

So could the unthinkable happen and Messi leave?

He is currently under contract until 2021 and Abidal said in his interview with Sport that talks are underway over a new deal and he is “positive” over the situation.

Interestingly though, Messi reportedly has a clause in his contract where he can walk away from the club at the end of any season. It has been reported that even if he does extend his deal then he would want to keep this clause.

The reality is that if Messi did leave then Barcelona's shortcomings over the last few years would be even more glaringly obvious.

So far, with Messi's brilliance, they have just about papered over the cracks by winning two league titles, but for how much longer?

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