Saudi Arabia’s continued desire to become a destination for some of football’s biggest stars in conjunction with the ongoing promotion of the beautiful game within its borders has now set its sights on another gargantuan name; Lionel Messi.
After Al-Nassr famously sealed a deal that bought Portuguese living legend Cristiano Ronaldo to the middle eastern nation, reports have now detailed a record-breaking contract offer for none other than arch-footballing nemesis Lionel Messi.
According to French outlet L’Équipe (cited by Get French Football), the wealthy middle eastern nation has issued the only offer on the table for the 35-year-old Argentine at the time of writing, one that is thought to be valued at somewhere between €500m-€600m.
Lionel Messi has a record-breaking offer on the table from Saudi Arabia, worth between €500m and €600m – remaining in Europe is still the Argentine’s priority, though. (L’Éq)https://t.co/RN99OqZgt9
— Get French Football News (@GFFN) May 8, 2023
With the World Cup winner’s association with French giants Paris Saint-Germain all but guaranteed to come to an end after the conclusion of the 2022-23 Ligue 1 season, where the iconic forward goes next remains to be seen, though it appears his desire is to remain in the upper rung of the European football ladder despite closing-in on the twilight of his phenomenal career.
Reports from the French outlet have mentioned that the possible move to the Gulf state was discussed during his unsanctioned trip last week which has seen the forward in for heavy backlash from fans and media across the board.
That same report confirmed that former Barcelona club mates Jordi Alba and Sergio Busquets were also offered deals in order to persuade Messi to accept terms, while Sergio Ramos, Ángel Di María, and Leandro Paredes could all possibly be offered contracts with the aim of deploying the cadre of top names across multiple clubs in Riyadh in a bid to grow the domestic league akin to MLS.
