The Barcelona president Joan Laporta has said star player Lionel Messi wanted to stay at the club. The club's all-time top scorer was expected to re-sign with the Catalan side until their shock announcement that 'financial and structural obstacles' made it impossible to renew his contract. 'The whole process has reached a point where in a negotiation you must stand up and you must leave emotions out, analyse it with the rigour and the value of the numbers,' Laporta said. Subscribe to Guardian Football ► http://is.gd/GuardianFootball Lionel Messi leaving Barcelona after ‘obstacles’ thwart contract renewal ► https://www.theguardian.com/football/2021/aug/05/lionel-messi-leaving-barcelona-after-obstacles-thwart-contract-renewal The Guardian publishes independent journalism, made possible by supporters. Contribute to The Guardian today ► https://support.theguardian.com/contribute Website ► https://www.theguardian.com Facebook ► https://www.facebook.com/theguardian Twitter ► https://twitter.com/guardian Instagram ► https://www.instagram.com/guardian