Not improved at all? Ex-Barcelona vice-president makes shocking nine-word claim about Lionel Messi’s relationship with Joan Laporta, and it also includes Neymar

In a new interview that has sent shockwaves through Catalonia, former club vice-president Jordi Mestre opened up about the Argentine’s strained relationship with Joan Laporta, while also revisiting Neymar’s controversial 2017 departure — and Messi’s emotional wish to bring him back.

The wounds of Lionel Messi’s Barcelona exit refuse to close. In a new interview that has sent shockwaves through Catalonia, former club vice-president Jordi Mestre opened up about the Argentine’s strained relationship with Joan Laporta, while also revisiting Neymar’s controversial 2017 departure — and Messi’s emotional wish to bring him back. The revelations paint a portrait of mistrust, unhealed tensions, and decisions that changed the club’s course forever.

For Messi and Neymar, the Barcelona era defined a golden age of soccer. Yet, for those who built that legacy, the scars of its collapse remain raw. Speaking to Sports360, Mestre admitted that Messi’s relationship with Laporta has deteriorated even further since the Argentine’s 2021 departure. The former vice-president — who served under Josep Maria Bartomeu from 2015 to 2019 — revealed that sources close to the Messi family told him the tension has not eased over time.

“I’ve been told by third parties that Leo Messi and his family are very, very, very angry with Laporta. Very angry,” Mestre confessed. “Whatever we do for Leo will never be enough. What he gave us is incredible, not only on a sporting level. Financially, the tours with him were one thing — without him, completely another.”

The Argentine’s exit in 2021 was one of the darkest moments in Barcelona’s modern history — a departure forced by financial chaos rather than soccer decline. Despite Laporta’s public insistence that the club would find a way to renew Messi’s contract, the superstar was told days before the announcement that no deal could be registered due to La Liga’s financial restrictions.

The fallout, as Mestre reveals, runs deeper than fans imagined. The nine-word claim — “Messi and his family are very angry with Laporta” — underscores a fractured bond between the club’s greatest ever player and its president, one that continues to cast a shadow over any potential reconciliation.

The missing tribute

For Mestre, what hurts most is Barcelona’s failure to properly honor Messi’s legacy. The man who once lifted four Champions Leagues and ten La Liga titles with the club still has not received an official farewell. “I don’t know what the club is planning, but whatever it is, it won’t be enough,” Mestre lamented. “I’d do something historic — for example, naming the main stand of the new Spotify Camp Nou after Leo Messi, so his name is passed down from generation to generation.”

He emphasized that no player has given Barcelona so much, not only in soccer terms, but in global impact. “Yes, he earned a lot, but he made the club earn far more. Even world-class players came just to play alongside Messi,” Mestre added.

The comments come after Laporta recently hinted at a “tribute match” for Messi, though the details remain vague. For fans, the idea of reconciliation still feels distant — and Mestre’s words only confirm why.

Neymar: The unfinished story

Mestre also revisited another wound from Barcelona’s past — Neymar’s record-breaking move to PSG in 2017. The Brazilian’s $258 million exit, the most expensive transfer in soccer history, left Messi devastated. “It really hurt that Neymar didn’t work out because he was extraordinary,” Mestre admitted. “He was supposed to be Leo Messi’s heir. Messi himself told me he wanted him back. And I get it — having Neymar made things easier for him.”

The revelation confirms years of rumors that Messi personally pushed for Neymar’s return in 2019. The pair’s on-field chemistry, part of the legendary “MSN” trio with Luis Suarez, brought 302 goals and a 2015 Champions League crown. Their separation marked the beginning of the club’s decline, as Barca struggled to replace the balance and brilliance they shared.

Mestre also revisited his infamous claim that he was “200% sure Neymar wouldn’t leave” — a statement made days before the player joined PSG. “At that time, not even the players knew he was going. They had been at Leo Messi’s wedding, sitting at the same table, and Neymar said nothing,” he explained.