FC Barcelona president Joan Laporta has confirmed that the club is actively working on plans to erect a statue of Lionel Messi at the newly renovated Spotify Camp Nou, marking the first major permanent homage to the greatest player in the club’s history. The announcement comes just days after Messi made an emotional surprise visit to the stadium, reigniting affection between the Argentine icon and his boyhood club.
Laporta: “Messi Will Always Be Linked to Barça”
Speaking during the presentation of a book on La Masia- Barcelona’s famed youth academy- Laporta reiterated the club’s determination to honour Messi properly after his abrupt departure in 2021.
“Messi deserves the tribute at Can Barça, the most beautiful in the world,” Laporta said. “We always think that more has to be done for Messi. He should have a statue at the Spotify Camp Nou, like Cruyff and Kubala. It would be only fair for Leo to have his own.”
Laporta confirmed that the board has already discussed the statue project and has begun preliminary work, though the final design and timeline will require the approval of Messi’s family.
“We are working on it. When the time is right and we have the design, we’ll bring it up. All Barcelona fans would love to have a statue of Leo Messi where the great figures in Barça’s history are.”
Messi’s Emotional Return to Camp Nou
Messi returned to Barcelona on Sunday in a discreet visit to the newly revamped stadium- his first since leaving the club in 2021. He later posted photos on Instagram with a heartfelt message expressing his longing for a proper farewell:
“I hope that one day I can return, and not just to say goodbye as a player, as I never got to do.”
His departure, forced by Barcelona’s financial crisis and complicated by COVID-19 restrictions, denied him a final match in front of the fans he dazzled for more than two decades. The moment remains one of the most painful chapters in modern football.
A Legacy That Demands Honouring
Messi’s numbers at Barcelona need little embellishment:
- 672 goals in 778 appearances
- 34 trophies, including 10 La Liga titles and 4 Champions League crowns
- The club’s all-time top scorer and appearance maker
- A symbol of La Masia, having joined the academy at age 13
He is widely regarded as the greatest player ever to wear the Blaugrana shirt and arguably the greatest to play the sport.
No Playing Return, but a Permanent Bond
Despite speculation sparked by Messi’s recent visit, Laporta dismissed the idea of a playing return, pointing to the forward’s fresh contract with Inter Miami, which runs until 2028. Instead, the focus is on ensuring that Messi’s legacy is permanently embedded at Camp Nou.
Laporta reiterated that Messi will always have the club’s doors open after his eventual retirement:
“He knows that Barcelona’s doors are open. We have absolute respect and admiration. He deserves the most beautiful tribute in the world from Barcelona.”
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A Tribute Years in the Making
The statue will join those of Johan Cruyff and Laszlo Kubala- two foundational figures in Barça’s history. For many fans, adding Messi to that lineup is not only appropriate but overdue.
As the renovated Camp Nou prepares to reopen to full capacity, Barcelona hopes to stage a tribute worthy of its greatest-ever footballer- an emotional celebration long delayed but finally approaching reality.
