Barcelona Transfer News: Lionel Messi Treatment Slammed by Hristo Stoichkov

Former Barcelona star Hristo Stoichkov has criticised the Catalan club's recent treatment of Lionel Messi, warning the Blaugrana they may lose the Argentine superstar if they do not pamper him.

Barca have endured a turbulent start to the week in the wake of their 1-0 loss to Real Sociedad on Sunday, with sporting director Andoni Zubizarreta sacked, assistant sporting director Carles Puyol departing and Messi missing training on Monday, supposedly due to gastroenteritis. However, based on Mundo Deportivo and Marca reports, ESPN FC's Dermot Corrigan seems to put his absence down to reported recent rows with Camp Nou boss Luis Enrique.

Manu Fernandez/Associated Press

Messi started on the bench for the loss to La Real and Stoichkov believes the 27-year-old might be tempted to leave the club—as other high-profile non-Catalans have in the past—unless his relationship with the Barca hierarchy can be mended, per Onda Cero (h/t Goal.com's Stefan Coerts):

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The problems Messi has encountered all came from within the club. There's been talks about fines, contract talks, advertising issues. You have to protect and pamper the best player in the world. Messi should finish his career at Barcelona and nowhere else. The club should look after him and pamper him. Tell me the name of one foreign player who did not leave the club through the back door in the end.

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Corrigan backs up Stoichkov's point concerning foreign players departing Barca under a cloud, and likely every major suitor in Europe would go after Messi if it looked as though he may want to leave the Camp Nou.

The Bulgarian Stoichkov also described Barcelona as being "in chaos" and it has certainly been an inconsistent couple of years since Pep Guardiola departed the club in 2012.

Barca failed to win any significant silverware under Tata Martino last season and Enrique has come in for major criticism this term for being out of his depth and having no set plan, per La Liga writer Andy West:

Real Madrid having lost earlier in the day and with the opportunity to go top of the league with three points, it did seem somewhat odd for Barca to leave Messi—and Neymar—out of the starting lineup for the match against David Moyes' side.

The Brazilian seemed to indicate to Messi they both warm up following La Real's opener and eventual winner—which came after just two minutes—the pair seemingly unimpressed with warming the bench:

That being said, Barca are still just one point back from Los Blancos in La Liga—albeit having played one game more than Real—and are set to face Manchester City in the first knockout round of the Champions League next month.

Messi is still in fine form having scored 15 league goals and provided seven assists this season already, per WhoScored.com, and it would likely take a major upheaval—and serious amounts of money—to see Messi depart the club at which he has thrived since he was a boy.

The Argentine superstar signed a new contract in the summer and, although his relationship with Barcelona does seem to be fractured at present, there is time for the club to sort it out.

Stoichkov is right; Messi is arguably the best player in the world. Barca's star man and his continued place at the Camp Nou need to be assured, but that is not to say his departure is imminent, or indeed, likely.