Barcelona sporting director Robert Fernandez: 'We'll never sell Lionel Messi'

Barcelona sporting director Robert Fernandez has insisted that the club will never sell Lionel Messi.

The Argentina international has won seven La Liga titles, three Copa del Rey trophies and the Champions League four times during his time at Barca, as well as four Ballon d'Or trophies.

The 28-year-old was previously linked with a big-money move to Chelsea, but Fernandez has claimed that Messi will play for Barca until he retires.

"He'll play here for a lifetime," Fernandez told Mundo Deportivo. "Unfortunately he won't play forever but there's still a lot of great Messi left. There's many years of football and he's such a smart player.

"Logically as people get older they lose things but he is smart enough to always have extraordinary performances. He has that gift. It's impossible to find another one like Messi. What he's done, no-one has ever done before."

Barcelona have won their first two league games of the season, but Messi is yet to score.