"If I don't win, I am sure that Lionel Messi will not stay at Barcelona" - Club presidential candidate Joan Laporta

Barcelona presidential candidate Joan Laporta has claimed that he can convince Lionel Messi to remain at the club as he shares a good relationship with the Argentine.

Lionel Messi’s future could well be decided after the presidential elections that are scheduled to take place on March 7th.

It remains to be seen who Barcelona’s socios will vote for this time, as the club have been in a financial mess despite remaining competitive on the pitch.

Laporta, who was the 38th president of Barcelona from 2003 to 2010, has said that Lionel Messi will consider his proposal to remain with the club. He was quoted as saying by Marca:

"I have a great relationship with Leo [Messi] and he will consider whatever proposal I make."

"If I don't win, I am sure that Leo will not stay at Barcelona. I'm convinced that if the other candidates win, Messi will not remain at Barcelona. He wasn't happy during Freixa's time on the board," he added.

Barcelona and Lionel Messi are kicking on despite off-the-pitch distractions

The presidential election is crucial as Barcelona need sane heads to be making decisions at the board level.

Despite all the distractions off the pitch, Barcelona finally showed some fighting spirit on the pitch on Wednesday. They picked up a 3-0 win against Sevilla to erase a 2-0 first-leg deficit and progress to the final of the Copa del Rey.

The Blaugrana were hammered 4-1 by PSG in the UEFA Champions League and are five points behind Atletico Madrid in La Liga. Winning the Copa del Rey will be massive for the Catalans this season as it will show some signs of progress under Ronald Koeman.

Lionel Messi has looked a lot better in recent weeks, which is good for the club as he continues to fight for Barcelona on the pitch.

With things moving in the right direction under Koeman, fans will hope that Lionel Messi decides to stay with Barcelona.