Joan Laporta: 'Lionel Messi could stay stay at Barcelona'

Presidential candidate Joan Laporta has suggested that Lionel Messi could remain at Barcelona past the end of the season.

Messi is expected to end his long-term association with the Catalan giants when his contract expires in the summer.

Manchester City and Paris Saint-Germain are said to be interested in the 33-year-old, who saw the terms of his £492m contract leaked to a Spanish newspaper over the weekend.

However, Laporta has claimed that the Argentina international could still pen a fresh deal at Camp Nou over the coming months.

Speaking to RAC1, Laporta said: "I have indications that he feels good at Barcelona and that he wants to stay here."

On the details of Messi's contract, he added: "Messi generates more revenue than the money he costs. We have carried out a study that shows that a third of what the club makes comes from him."

Laporta previously spent time as Barcelona's president between 2003 and 2010, a period which saw Messi make his first-team debut as a 17-year-old.