Leaving Barcelona, where he became one of the most recognizable and popular soccer players in the world, was “a difficult change,” he admitted as he did Sunday in a tearful goodbye in Spain.
“I’m very happy,” he told reporters, speaking in Spanish (via an interpreter), in a news conference in PSG’s Parc des Princes stadium. “You all know how my exit was from Barcelona. It was a very hard moment after so many years, but the moment I arrived here, I felt very happy.”
Joined by his wife and three sons, he repeated that he was ready to move on and said he relished the opportunity to play on a team with Neymar, a former teammate in Barcelona, and Kylian Mbappe.
“The whole dressing room and staff influenced my decision [to sign with PSG],” he said, calling negotiations quick. “What I can say today is that I have the same will and enthusiasm that I had as a kid. I’m going to give my best.”
Messi had said he thought he’d spend his entire career in Barcelona, where he played for 21 years. His first day in Paris was spent getting a physical in a hospital and taking the pitch in his new uniform, one that bore a change of number. In Paris, he’ll be No. 30, the number he wore in his first two seasons with Barcelona before he switched to 19 and then 10, the number that will continue to belong to Neymar with Paris. It was a somewhat jarring sight, but one that Paris Saint-Germain President Nasser Al-Khelaifi said Messi transcends.
“Everybody knows Leo. He is the only six-time winner of the Ballon d’Or,” he said in introducing Messi. “He makes football magic, beautiful, and he will be a winner.”
Winning was the emphasis, particularly for Messi. He repeated that he was eager to get to training and to settle into his routine. “I still want to play and I want to win,” he said. “I want to keep winning titles and that’s why I came here to this club. … I want to begin now.”
When he’ll be ready to play was an unanswered question. “It’s very new,” he said, adding that the staff would decide when he’s ready. “Maybe I need a preseason myself.”
Messi said his relationship with Neymar had influenced his decision. “It’s really crazy and I’m happy about that, sharing the day-to-day life with Neymar and Mbappe. I really want to train and compete now with the best players. It’s an incredible experience.”
Still, he said he “can’t forget what I did and experienced in Barcelona, but … every day we are processing.”
Messi and Barcelona won the Champions League four times and the pressure is on to elevate PSG as he and his family settle into a new city. In Messi, PSG gets the highest-profile free agent in the history of soccer and an athlete whose hope to stay at Barcelona was dashed because of financial rules in La Liga and Barcelona’s debt. In PSG, he joins a team built with an infusion of Qatari sovereign wealth. When Messi’s contract expired at the end of June, PSG, which lost the French title last season to Lille, was in position to sign him. Neymar and other PSG players helped seal the deal and create a super team.
“It’s a new experience for me and I really want to do it. At the end of the day it is football and that is the same in the whole world,” Messi said. “I am sure I will get used to my new teammates and I am really happy. I want it to begin now.”
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