Messi's brother says no one knew about Barcelona before Messi, later says he was 'making jokes'
Matias suggested on streaming platform Twitch that his brother – who is a World Cup winner and has seven Ballons d’Or to his name – was solely responsible for making Barca a global superpower
Lionel Messi's brother, Matias, has apologised for his bizarre rant in which he made stunning claims about Barcelona's history.
Matias suggested on streaming platform Twitch that his brother – who is a World Cup winner and has seven Ballons d'Or to his name – was solely responsible for making Barca a global superpower. He said: "I don't know about you, but Barcelona became known thanks to Messi. Nobody knew about them before. Whoever's had the chance to go to Barcelona and see the museum, you can see that the museum is Messi."
Some serious backtracking has now been taken in by Matias, with a post on Instagram reading: "I want to apologise for what I said on social networks: I was just making jokes with my son and my friends. How am I going to think that of a club as big as Barcelona and their history, which has given a lot both to my family and Leo? For us, Catalonia is our second home and that is well known. I'm very sorry and I apologise to everyone, especially the Barcelona fans."
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The likes of Johan Cruyff, Rivaldo, Romario, Ronald Koeman, Laszlo Kubala, Carles Rexach and Sandor Kocsis all came before Messi at Barcelona, with several La Liga titles and a European Cup secured prior to an iconic Argentine arriving at Camp Nou and helping to deliver another glittering era of success.
Matias also blamed Barcelona president Joan Laporta for Lionel Messi's surprise departure in 2021, when Barcelona said they didn't have the funds to re-sign the legendary Argentine player. On Twitch, he said he watched a video clip of Laporta asking for Lionel Messi to return, to which he recalls reacting with laughter and thinking: "We are not going back to Barcelona, and if we do, we are going to do a good cleaning. Among them, kick out Joan Laporta."
Lionel Messi had been at odds with previous club president Josep Maria Bartomeu and had hoped Laporta's election would lead to a contract resolution, however no deal was reached and he made a tearful exit ahead of a move to Paris Saint-Germain.
"People [in Barcelona] did not support him," added Messi's brother. "They should have gone out for a protest or something, let Laporta leave and Messi stay. The Spanish are traitors. I'm telling this because I want it to come out of our guts."
Despite Laporta's public comments suggesting Messi would be welcomed back to Camp Nou, all indications are that the forward will either re-sign at PSG or move to MLS.
