The relationship between Barcelona and Lionel Messi faces the possibility of ending in the 16th year.
Photo: Insider
After 16 years of playing for Barcelona’s first team , Lionel Messi decided to part ways. With the Catalan team, Messi won the Champions League 4 times, 6 King’s Cup titles, 10 La Liga crowns and many other glories.
In 16 years (if we count 19 years since starting at La Masia Academy), Messi has turned himself into a legend at Camp Nou, one of the greatest players in the world with a total of 634 goals after 731. match for Barca.
There’s a lot of glory but there’s also a lot of low notes. Let’s look back at Messi’s 16 years at Camp Nou through his images from year to year.
2004: After nearly a year playing for the Barca B team, at 17 years old, Messi became the youngest player in Barca history to have an official match for the club. Photo: Insider
2006: Even though Barca had a difficult period, Messi still had 17 goals to prove he was a real star at the age of 19. Photo: Insider
2008: After Ronaldinho left, Messi received Barca’s number 10 shirt and once again ranked in the Top 3 in 2 noble individual title races. Photo: Insider
2010: Although the Argentina team soon had to bid farewell to the World Cup, Messi’s scoring performance at Barca was enough to help him win the Ballon d’Or for the second year in a row. Photo: Insider
2012: Another year Messi was honored to become the first and only person to win the Ballon d’Or in 4 consecutive years. Photo: Insider
2014: Messi became the player with the most goals in La Liga history, surpassing the record of 251 goals set by legendary Telmo Zarra. Photo: Insider
2016: Messi scored 51 goals to be the best striker of the year in Europe but still ranked behind Ronaldo in the race to win the Golden Ball. Photo: Insider
2018: For the first time since 2009, Messi did not rank in the Top 2 of the race to win the Golden Ball, despite scoring more goals than any other player in the world. Photo: Insider
2020: Messi marked his 630th goal for Barca. But after a 2-8 defeat to Bayern Munich in the Champions League, the Argentine striker shocked everyone by announcing his intention to leave Barca. Photo: Insider