Lionel Messi is not considering leaving Barcelona despite public disagreements with the Catalan club’s Sporting Director Eric Abidal.
According to Sky Sports News, whilst the Argentine has found the spat difficult, he is not intending on leaving this summer, instead hoping to see out his current deal at least.
His contract at the Camp Nou is set to run until at least next summer and he is also open to extending, albeit only on a rolling year-by-year basis.
Barca, meanwhile, would prefer Messi to commit to a new, multi-year deal and are hoping to conduct talks with the forward and his agent in the coming months.
Any new deal would surely silence suggestions that Messi is set to depart the club. Following his disagreement with Abidal, the likes of Manchester City, Paris Saint Germain and Juventus were all linked with his signature by foreign outlets, albeit no Spanish sources confirming these reports.
Former Barcelona boss Pep Guardiola has suggested he would prefer Messi to remain at the club throughout the rest of his career. He said: “He is a player from Barcelona and he will stay there, that’s my wish for him to stay there. I’m not going to talk about players playing for other clubs. I think he will finish his career there, that’s my wish.”
Barcelona take on Real Betis in La Liga action on Sunday evening. Messi can be backed at 13/5 with William Hill to score the opening goal of the game.
HOT! Weekly cashback betting offers for different markets 
