Lionel Messi, Xavi Talked Barcelona Return amid Rumors: PSG Contract Expires in June

Barcelona manager Xavi Hernandez said on Monday that he has spoken to his former teammate, Lionel Messi, about a return to the Blaugrana and has told club president Joan Laporta that he wants the superstar back.

"With the relationship I have with him, I think I have been very clear. The door is open for him here," Xavi told Diario Sport (h/t ESPN's Sam Marsden and Moises Llorens). "It depends on his personal decision."

"In terms of what I am in charge of, the football side of things, there are no doubts that if Messi comes back he is going to help us," he added. "I have made that clear to the president. I don't have a single doubt about that because he is still a difference-maker, he is still hungry, he's a winner and he is a leader."

Messi's future is one of the most fascinating subplots of the summer, with his contract at Paris Saint-Germain expiring in June. Alongside Barca's interest, a move to either the Saudi Pro League's Al Hilal—following in the footsteps of Cristiano Ronaldo, who plays for Al Nassr—or Major League Soccer's Inter Miami has been rumored.

Of course, a return to PSG is also a possibility, though that began to feel increasingly unlikely when he was suspended by the club for two weeks in early May after he skipped a mandatory training session while traveling to Saudi Arabia for sponsorship obligations.

Messi, 35, spent his entire club career with Barcelona before a two-year pit stop at PSG. His time at Barca is the stuff of legend—he was a seven-time Ballon d'Or winner, 10-time La Liga champion and four-time Champions League victor during his Barcelona years.

He had nine seasons with 30 or more league goals, three seasons with 40 or more goals and reached an astonishing 50 La Liga goals in the 2011-12 season.

To put that figure in perspective, Manchester City's Erling Haaland set the Premier League record with 36 goals this past campaign. Messi hit 36 or more goals five times during his time at Barca.

He never reached those heights at PSG, though he still posted an incredibly impressive 16 goals and 16 assists this past season, continuing to evolve as a playmaker later in his career.

Granted, it's a role he's always played well, with 14 seasons of double-digit assists in league play. But it often was overshadowed by his unrelenting goal-scoring.

Messi forever cemented his case as the GOAT after leading Argentina to a World Cup title in December. Now, the only question remaining is where he'll finish his career. Xavi is hoping it will end where it started.