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"I came back to Barcelona (from the Copa America in July) to
prepare for the season, after taking advantage of the extra days
of vacation that the coach (Ronald Koeman) had given me," Messi
told France Football in an interview released on Saturday.
"I had in mind to sign my contract and to start training right
away. I thought that everything was settled and that all that
was missing was my signature (on the contract).
"But when I arrived in Barcelona, I was told that it was no
longer possible, that I could not stay and that I had to find
another club, because Barca could not afford to extend my
contract. That changed my plans.
"It was extremely hard to take. To think that we would have to
leave our home and that the family would have to change its
routine," added the the six-times Ballon d'Or winner.
Messi, however, was reunited with Neymar at PSG, after he and
the Brazilian played together for four seasons at Barcelona from
2013-17, and joined compatriots Leandro Paredes and Angel Di
Maria and coach Mauricio Pochettino, also an Argentine.
"That was a big part of my decision because I knew I was coming
to a new country and had to start from scratch. Knowing that I
had friends in the dressing room made me think that things would
be easier to adapt to," said Messi.
"And I was not wrong, because it was very easy to settle,
especially because there are many players who speak Spanish,
like me, and some friends like 'Ney', 'Lea' (Paredes), 'Fideo'
(Di Maria), who helped me when I arrived."
After the "very painful" experience of leaving Barca, where
Messi arrived at the age of 13, he is now aiming to win a fifth
Champions League title.
Messi forms, with Neymar and France striker Kylian Mbappe, one
of the most formidable attacking lineups in the world, but he is
aware they need to work on finding the perfect balance.
While Neymar and Messi have known each other for years, the
Argentine and France striker Mbappe still need to build a
relationship.
"With a player like him, it's easy to get along. Also, Kylian
speaks perfect Spanish, so we have good exchanges off the pitch
as well," said Messi, who has so far scored one goal in five
appearances in all competitions for PSG.
"It makes things easier. Now, I've only been here a short time,
so it's still a bit early to draw conclusions. But I'm sure it
will work out well."
(Reporting by Julien Pretot; Editing by Ken Ferris)
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