Barcelona presidential candidate Marc Ciria has said he will do everything he can to bring Lionel Messi back to the club if he prevails in next year's election.
Current president Joan Laporta's term ends in 2026 and Ciria officially announced this week that he will run against him when elections are held sometime between March and June.
Despite leaving the club in 2021, Messi, who recently led current club Inter Miami to their first MLS Cup, is likely to indirectly play an important role in the coming months' campaign.
“We want our legends to be able to return to the club and not have to do it in the middle of the night and hidden,” Ciria said at an event to present his candidacy on Tuesday, a nod to Messi's unexpected appearance on Spotify Camp Nou last month.
“We will do everything possible to achieve this. [Messi] He is an indispensable figure for this club. You should return with a solid support system and good structure.
“The Messi-Barça relationship has to be like that of Michael Jordan-Nike. It has to go further, from the commercial and institutional sphere of the club to the sponsors and player development of La Masia.
“With the best player in the club's history we can do many things and earn a lot of money. Bringing him home is essential if we want to get out of the financial situation we find ourselves in.”
Messi, 38, recently signed a new contract in Miami to extend his stay with the MLS team until the end of the 2028 season, making his return to Barca, where he is the top scorer and appearance holder, unlikely.
However, there remains a desire to bring him back in any capacity given his importance to Barca.
Another presidential candidate, Víctor Font, who came second behind Laporta in 2021, recently said that his “first call” if he wins the election will be to Messi.
Meanwhile, Laporta's relationship with Messi was strained by the Argentine international's departure in 2021, when Barça could not afford to close a contract renewal that had been agreed with him.
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In an attempt to heal those scars, Laporta recently said he plans to erect a statue of Messi at the Camp Nou as part of a tribute he wants to pay to the legendary player, who never received a proper expulsion because he left during the pandemic.
“It's not about convincing him with a statue or a tribute game,” Ciria added. “This is an agreement that turns the best athlete on the planet into Barça's greatest ambassador.”
Messi's appearance at the Camp Nou in the middle of the November night was accompanied by a message on social networks in which he expressed his desire to return to Barça one day.
“I hope that one day I can return, and not just to say goodbye as a player, as I never got to do…”, he posted on Instagram.
