Messi admits difficult summer at Barcelona but ready to fight for everything now

The Argentine forward is out of contract at the end of the season, while his attempts to leave Camp Nou last summer were foiled by La Liga and Barcelona officials.

Lionel Messi admitted he was going through a “very bad time” at Barcelona last summer as he addressed his situation at Camp Nou.

Messi, 33, announced his intention to leave Barca earlier this year and attempted to activate a break clause in his contract via burofax.

But La Liga and Barcelona officials claimed the clause had expired and Messi ultimately decided to avoid a legal dispute by remaining another season.

The dispute capped a dismal summer for the six-time Ballon d’Or winner, in which he was also on the receiving end of an 8-2 humbling by Bayern Munich in the Champions League.

Meanwhile, there has been little sign of improvement this season and Barcelona sit fifth in La Liga, eight points off leaders Atletico Madrid, who also have a game in hand.

Messi is out of contract at the end of the season with Manchester City, Paris Saint-Germain and Inter Milan reportedly vying for his signature.

But the Argentine insists last summer’s saga is firmly behind him and he is focussed on lifting Barcelona out of their “difficult time”.

Messi told Spanish outlet La Sexta : “The truth is that today I’m fine. It’s true that I had a very bad time in the summer.

“It came from before. What happened before the summer, because of how the season ended, the burofax and all that… Then I dragged it on a bit at the beginning of the season.

“But today I’m fine and I feel like fighting seriously for everything that lies ahead, [I’m] excited.

“I know that the club is going through a difficult time, at club level and everything that surrounds Barcelona, but I’m looking forward to it.”

Messi has scored six goals and picked up two assists in 13 La Liga games this season, while Barca return to action with a trip to Real Valladolid on Tuesday night.

©Mirror Football