Frenkie de Jong said Barcelona are in turmoil over Lionel Messi’s transfer, which will climb this week.
Messi’s desire to leave Barcelona 20 years later turned into one of the most mind-boggling stories of the summer, when the Argentine superstar recently filed an official transfer request and refused to attend scheduled Covid-19 tests and pre-season training in an attempt to push through a move to Manchester City.
Messi’s father Jorge will meet with Barcelona President Josep Bartomeu on Wednesday to demand permission for his son to leave amid a bitter dispute with the club over a contract clause he believes means he could switch to a free transfer.
Barcelona are in disarray, says Frenkie de Jong, as superstar Lionel Messi is about to leave the ship.
De Jong said that “chaos” is now in Barcelona, ”strange things are happening.”
De Jong, who had a tough first season with the Catalan giants, admitted that the club is in disarray as the fallout from their humiliating 8-2 defeat against Bayern Munich continues.
“Barcelona is a mess right now, so many strange things are happening. It’s chaos, the Dutch International told NOS.
“I myself have not spoken to him (Messi) about this. No club. So I honestly don’t know how it is.
“But if Messi really leaves, it will be a huge blow to the team and the club.
“When I come back after these international matches, I will see what happened at the club.”
Messi told Barcelona he wants to leave with Manchester City leaders to sign him
Dutchman De Jong also revealed that Messi is still part of the Barcelona player group on WhatsApp.
Manchester City is hoping to bring Messi to the Premier League, although it would be financially impractical to close a deal if Barcelona continues to push against the 33-year-old’s release clause for a staggering £ 629 million.
Barcelona insists that Messi is still under contract and has urged him to stop trying to move away and sign a new contract.
Despite huge uncertainty about his future, De Jong revealed that Messi is still in the Barcelona players’ group chat.
Speaking to Fox Sports, he added, “I hope Messi is still there when I return, but that’s not up to me.
“He’s still in the group chat. I’m not the type to talk about it [his potential exit] with him, I’m sure there are a lot of people around him these days. “