Messi is now officially a free agent, but Barca are still hopeful

Lionel Messi,

 who’s currently with Argentina’s 2020 Copa America squad, has been heavily linked with a move either to 

 or 

.

However, the re-appointment of Juan Laporta as the Blaugrana’s president gave the Catalan club’s fans hope to keep their hero at the club as among the first things he did was 

.

Laporta 

told reporters on Wednesday about the Argentine’s situation with the club: "We are doing well but you have to fit a deal into the financial fair play.

"We want him to stay and we are excited for him to stay. I wish I could tell you that Leo is staying but I can't say yet. We are in the process of finding the solution."

The Argentine has been the headline of the club’s news since last summer with 

Paris Saint-Germain

 and 

Manchester City

 closely monitoring his situation, 

However, Catalan’s former team-mate, 

Dani Alves

, warned his team-mate of the ‘possible exit’ in 

.

Alves told the Guardian: “I have said to Messi several times: he was born to be a Barcelona player and Barcelona were born to be his club.

“He has given me advice before so I can do the same to him. Once he told me to stay in Barcelona because there wasn’t any place that was better. ‘Where will you be happier?’ he asked me. So I stayed.

“Now I have reminded him of that conversation and that a good friend (him) advised me that Barcelona is the best place ever. I haven’t had an answer from him yet but when you leave Barcelona you realise how good it is. All the players, and I mean everyone, who has left Barcelona have been sorry. All of them regret leaving, irrespective of the reason.”

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