Football

Oct. 10, 2019 | 12:07 AM

Messi wanted to leave Barca during tax probe

Barcelona's Lionel Messi on the bench before the match REUTERS/Marcelo Del Pozo

Reuters

A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Daily Star on October 10, 2019, on page 7.

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Summary

Barcelona captain Lionel Messi has said he considered leaving the club when was investigated for tax fraud in 2013, saying he felt "badly treated" by Spain. Messi, who has been at Barcelona since he was 13 and is their all-time top scorer, was found guilty in 2016 along with his father Jorge of defrauding the Spanish government of 4.2 million euros ($4.61 million) between 2007 and 2009 over income earned from image rights.

He did not serve any jail time after exchanging his sentence for a fine of 250,000 euros, as in Spain defendants without a previous conviction are permitted to serve any sentence of under two years on probation.