Messi returns to Barcelona training for the first time since his attempt to leave failed

Lionel Messi participated in Barcelona training on Monday, his first session since his attempt to leave the club failed.

The Argentine star confirmed in an exclusive interview with objective last Friday that he will stay at the Camp Nou after not being able to engineer a move.

Messi believed he could use a clause in his contract to leave for free, but Barça and La Liga disputed that claim, insisting that their deal could only be terminated if his € 700 million release clause was paid.

The 33-year-old accused Barça president Josep Maria Bartomeu of failing to fulfill his promise to allow him to leave if he wished, but stressed that he would be fully committed to the club for 2020-21.

Speaking to Goal, he said: “I thought and was sure that I was free to go, the president always said that at the end of the season I could decide whether to stay or not,” he said.

“Now they hold on to the fact that I did not say it before June 10, when it turns out that on June 10 we were competing for La Liga in the midst of this terrible coronavirus and this disease was altered all season.

“And this is the reason why I will continue at the club. Now I’m going to continue at the club because the president told me that the only way to leave was to pay the clause of 700 million euros (624 million pounds / 823 million dollars), and that that is impossible.

Messi, who was photographed modeling Barça’s new third kit early Monday, was later seen arriving at the club’s training ground.

According to Brand, the six-time Ballon d’Or was the first player to be seen in Sant Joan Despí, having arrived an hour and a half before the start of training.

Later, Barça tweeted a photo of Messi participating in a training session with new coach Ronald Koeman for the first time.

The Catalan giants are due to start their new La Liga campaign against Villarreal later this month.