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Paris Saint-Germain president confident Lionel Messi will sign new contract

PSG president confident Lionel Messi will sign new contract
© Reuters
Paris Saint-Germain president Nasser Al-Khelaifi is confident that Lionel Messi will sign a new contract with the French giants after the 2022 World Cup.

Paris Saint-Germain president Nasser Al-Khelaifi is confident that Lionel Messi will sign a new contract with the French giants after the 2022 World Cup.

The 35-year-old's existing deal with PSG is due to expire next June, and there has been a host of speculation surrounding his future over the last few months.

Barcelona are said to be keen to re-sign the Argentina international, while there is also thought to be firm interest from the MLS in the shape of Inter Miami.

However, Messi recently hinted that he was seriously considering signing a new deal at PSG, having now fully settled following his arrival on a free transfer in 2021.

"I like Paris a lot more now, I have discovered the city and I find it magnificent," Le Parisien quoted Messi as saying. "In the first year, there was a huge change.

Argentina's Lionel Messi celebrates after the match on November 30, 2022© Reuters

"Things happened very suddenly, it was not my objective to leave Barcelona, and everything about it was very abrupt. After this long period and the difficult times, I am happy to live where I live, and my family and I are enjoying Paris.

"It was hard at the start, we had stayed all our lives in the same place, I had never moved, and I did not know what it was like to leave.

"We did not expect this, it happened very quickly, and we had to leave Barcelona overnight. We found ourselves in a new environment.

"We had our life in Barcelona, our friends, our habits, and we found ourselves in a different place, with another language, another football, another climate, I suffered a lot from that. It was hard. But, today, I enjoy everything including football."

Lionel Messi warms up for Argentina on November 22, 2022© Reuters

Messi has been in impressive form for PSG this season, scoring 12 goals and registering 14 assists in 19 appearances in all competitions, while he has scored three times and registered one assist in four outings at the World Cup to help Argentina reach the quarter-finals.

Al-Khelaifi has revealed that contract discussions will begin after the World Cup, and the PSG president is confident that the forward wants to remain in Paris.

"Definitely (feels that he wants to stay). He's very happy, you can see that with the national team. If a player's not happy you will see their performance not good for the national team," Al-Khelaifi told Sky Sports News.

"He performed fantastic this season for us, he's scored a lot of goals and assists for the national team and for the club.

"So what we agreed together - that after the World Cup, sit down together. But both sides - our side of the club and him - are very happy, so we will talk after the World Cup."

Messi's Argentina side will face Netherlands in the quarter-finals of the World Cup on Friday.

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Argentina's Lionel Messi celebrates scoring their first goal on November 26, 2022
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