Will Lionel Messi join Cristiano Ronaldo in Saudi Arabia? Journalist reveals PSG superstar’s transfer stance
Journalist Loic Tanzi has revealed that Lionel Messi is not keen on joining Cristiano Ronaldo in Saudi Arabia. The Argentine is currently in the final months of his contract with Paris Saint-Germain (PSG). He is yet to pen an extension.
There have been widespread reports linking Messi with a move back to Barcelona. However, Tanzi revealed that there is no concrete offer from Barca on the table as of now.
Messi, though, has a mega offer from SPL side Al-Hilal. The Riyadh-based team have reportedly offered the seven-time Ballon d'Or winner a deal worth €400 million per year.
A move to Al-Hilal would see Lionel Messi become Cristiano Ronaldo's direct rival yet again as the Portuguese legend plays for Al-Nassr at the moment.
Tanzi, though, claimed that the only realistic possibility for Messi at the moment is to renew with PSG and both parties are keeping their options open until the end of the season. He claimed on L'Equipe de Greg:
“Messi doesn’t want to go to Saudi Arabia, so only concrete offer he has is from PSG. Both parties (Messi and PSG) are leaving the door open until the end if Messi has nothing in the end [offer from Barça].”
Messi joined the Parisian club in 2021 after the Blaugrana were unable to renew his contract due to La Liga's wage cap rules. He has since scored 31 goals and has provided 34 assists in 70 matches for the Parisian club.
Paulo Dybala hated Cristiano Ronaldo due to the Portuguese star's Lionel Messi rivalry
Paulo Dybala and Cristiano Ronaldo spent three seasons as teammates at Juventus. They won five trophies together. They also shared the pitch for 94 games and combined for 12 goals.
However, Ronaldo has always had a great rivalry with Lionel Messi. Being an Argentine, Dybala claimed he always picked Messi's side and hated Ronaldo as a result. He said (via GOAL):
"It was three good years with Cristiano. The team was strong and he gave us something extra. The rivalry between him and [Lionel] Messi is deeply felt in Argentina and as a child, of course, I was always on Messi's side."
Dybala added:
"We used to discuss our lives in general and so I said to him, 'I basically hated you as a kid'. We had some laughs. We've always had a good relationship, a good dialogue."
Paulo Dybala is currently with AS Roma. He was part of the Argentina squad that won the FIFA World Cup last year, under the leadership of his childhood icon Lionel Messi. Having been teammates with both Messi and Ronaldo is a rare honor, one that Dybala has received.