Barcelona are reportedly planning to begin talks with Lionel Messi over a contract extension until 2022 next season.
According to Mundo Deportivo, Barca will focus on tying down Messi once they have negotiated renewals for Neymar and Sergio Busquets, both of which are expected in the coming months.
The Argentine is in the second season of his current contract, which expires in 2018, and La Blaugrana understandably wish to avoid the situation of letting his deal run into its final year.
The newspaper adds Barca want Messi to spearhead a historic year for the club, marked by the opening of the new Camp Nou, and feel he can play at 35, when his projected contract expires, without any problems.
It is also anticipated that he will have taken the captain’s armband from Andres Iniesta, who turns 32 in May, before then.
“I’ve always said, and I repeat, I’ll finish my career at my home, and my home is Barca,” he told L’Equipe in January.
