I" did everything possible and the club, Laporta, they couldn't do it because of La Liga," said Messi.

"I've heard things said about me, that I didn't want to continue, but on my life, we did everything we could because I wanted to stay.

"Last year, I didn't want to stay and I said it; this year, I wanted to stay and we couldn't."

He added: "I'm not ready for this. And honesty, with all the nonsense with the burofax, I was convinced of what I wanted to say.

"We thought we would be staying in Barcelona. The time we have had here has been amazing."