Barca not in a position to sign Messi 'but there is time', says La Liga chief Javier Tebas

La Liga president Javier Tebas said Barcelona are not in a position to re-sign Lionel Messi from Paris Saint-Germain due to their current financial situation.

Messi, 35, is expected to leave PSG at the end of the season and has been heavily linked with a return to Camp Nou, with Barca striker Robert Lewandowski saying he hopes to play with him next term.

The seven-time Ballon d'Or winner left Barcelona in 2021 as the Catalan giants struggled financially.

"Today, he could not [be registered in La Liga], but there is still time," Tebas told a press conference.

"We're not going to change the rules of financial control approved by the clubs to register Messi ... even if it would be our wish that he returns to our league."

Tebas said Barcelona could potentially balance the books enough by selling players.

Daily Mundo Deportivo reported on Wednesday that Barca have a "firm intention of bringing in Lionel Messi" this summer on a two-year deal.

Messi has struggled to reproduce his best form in Paris, scoring 31 goals in 69 appearances, and was booed by PSG fans earlier this month.

Even so, Messi scored a brilliant goal to help PSG seal a 3-1 home win over Lens on Saturday to all but secure the Ligue 1 title.

The result leaves the reigning champions nine points ahead with seven games left, meaning it is surely just a matter of time until PSG secure a French record 11th league title.

Lionel Messi faces the media at Nou Camp as he prepares to leave Barcelona.

The five pillars of Islam

1. Fasting

2. Prayer

3. Hajj

4. Shahada

5. Zakat

CONFIRMED%20LINE-UP

%3Cp%3EElena%20Rybakina%20(Kazakhstan)%0D%3Cbr%3EOns%20Jabeur%20(Tunisia)%0D%3Cbr%3EMaria%20Sakkari%20(Greece)%0D%3Cbr%3EBarbora%20Krej%C4%8D%C3%ADkov%C3%A1%20(Czech%20Republic)%0D%3Cbr%3EBeatriz%20Haddad%20Maia%20(Brazil)%0D%3Cbr%3EJe%C4%BCena%20Ostapenko%20(Latvia)%0D%3Cbr%3ELiudmila%20Samsonova%0D%3Cbr%3EDaria%20Kasatkina%E2%80%AF%0D%3Cbr%3EVeronika%20Kudermetova%E2%80%AF%0D%3Cbr%3ECaroline%20Garcia%20(France)%E2%80%AF%0D%3Cbr%3EMagda%20Linette%20(Poland)%E2%80%AF%0D%3Cbr%3ESorana%20C%C3%AErstea%20(Romania)%E2%80%AF%0D%3Cbr%3EAnastasia%20Potapova%E2%80%AF%0D%3Cbr%3EAnhelina%20Kalinina%20(Ukraine)%E2%80%AF%E2%80%AF%0D%3Cbr%3EJasmine%20Paolini%20(Italy)%E2%80%AF%0D%3Cbr%3EEmma%20Navarro%20(USA)%E2%80%AF%0D%3Cbr%3ELesia%20Tsurenko%20(Ukraine)%0D%3Cbr%3ENaomi%20Osaka%20(Japan)%20-%20wildcard%0D%3Cbr%3EEmma%20Raducanu%20(Great%20Britain)%20-%20wildcard%3Cbr%3EAlexandra%20Eala%20(Philippines)%20-%20wildcard%3C%2Fp%3E%0A

Graduated from the American University of Sharjah

She is the eldest of three brothers and two sisters

Has helped solve 15 cases of electric shocks

Enjoys travelling, reading and horse riding

While you're here

Gavin Esler: Coronavirus offers stinging rebuke to protectionists

Kareem Shaheen: Pandemics can save us from waging wars

Sholto Byrnes: Why the climate change clash will get nastier

The five pillars of Islam

1. Fasting

2. Prayer

3. Hajj

4. Shahada

5. Zakat

The biog

Favourite hobby: taking his rescue dog, Sally, for long walks.

Favourite book: anything by Stephen King, although he said the films rarely match the quality of the books

Favourite film: The Shawshank Redemption stands out as his favourite movie, a classic King novella

Favourite music: “I have a wide and varied music taste, so it would be unfair to pick a single song from blues to rock as a favourite"

On Women's Day

Dr Nawal Al-Hosany: Why more women should be on the frontlines of climate action

Shelina Janmohamed: Why shouldn't a spouse be compensated fairly for housework?

Justin Thomas: Challenge the notion that 'men are from Mars, women are from Venus'

The National Editorial: Is there much to celebrate on International Women's Day 2021?

Key facilities

Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
Premier League-standard football pitch
400m Olympic running track
NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
600-seat auditorium
Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
Specialist robotics and science laboratories
AR and VR-enabled learning centres
Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills

GOLF’S RAHMBO

- 5 wins in 22 months as pro
- Three wins in past 10 starts
- 45 pro starts worldwide: 5 wins, 17 top 5s
- Ranked 551th in world on debut, now No 4 (was No 2 earlier this year)
- 5th player in last 30 years to win 3 European Tour and 2 PGA Tour titles before age 24 (Woods, Garcia, McIlroy, Spieth)

Know your Camel lingo

The bairaq is a competition for the best herd of 50 camels, named for the banner its winner takes home

Namoos - a word of congratulations reserved for falconry competitions, camel races and camel pageants. It best translates as 'the pride of victory' - and for competitors, it is priceless

Asayel camels - sleek, short-haired hound-like racers

Majahim - chocolate-brown camels that can grow to weigh two tonnes. They were only valued for milk until camel pageantry took off in the 1990s

Millions Street - the thoroughfare where camels are led and where white 4x4s throng throughout the festival

• Remittance charges will be tackled by blockchain

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• News has a bright future and the UAE is at the heart of it

• Architecture is over - here's cybertecture

• The National announces Future of News journalism competition

• Round up: Experts share their visions of the world to come

Tomorrow 2021

Crown Prince reveals Tomorrow 2021 plan for Abu Dhabi's economy

The UAE explained: What are the new plans for the economy and why do we need them?

Abu Dhabi's plans to liberalise the economy are progressing fast - but how are other countries planning for post-oil?

UAE-wide visa changes: Expats imagine life after work in the UAE

UAE currency

While you're here

Joyce Karam: Chaotic first debate unlikely to swing undecideds

Hussein Ibish: Donald Trump's 3-step plan to cling to power

Sulaiman Hakemy: Make America lose again

UAE currency

The burning issue

The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE.

Read part three: the age of the electric vehicle begins

Read part two: how climate change drove the race for an alternative

Read part one: how cars came to the UAE

Killing of Qassem Suleimani

National Editorial: Suleimani has been killed, now we must de-escalate

Mina Al Oraibi: Air strike casts a long shadow over the decade ahead

Jack Moore: Why the assassination is such a monumental gamble

Matthew Levitt: Iran retains its ability to launch terror attacks

Hussein Ibish: Trump's order on solid constitutional ground

Simon Waldman: Cautious Israel keeping a low profile

While you're here

Kareem Shaheen: Even a pandemic could not unite today's America

Michele Wucker: The difference between a black swan and a grey rhino

Robert Matthews: Has flawed science and rushed research failed us?

Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis

'We are betting on you - you are the future', Gargash tells young Emiratis

Young Emiratis are real target of fake news, Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis hears

Majlis 2018: Young Emiratis see entrepreneurship and innovation on the horizon

Kareem Shaheen on Canada

A second lockdown will be especially tough in cold countries

Hard-hit Canada is springing back to the cliched 'new normal'

Justin Trudeau 2.0 will need to take all of Canada with him

On Women's Day

Shelina Janmohamed: Why shouldn't a spouse be compensated fairly for housework?

Samar Elmnhrawy: How companies in the Middle East can catch up on gender equality

The National Editorial: Is there much to celebrate on International Women's Day 2021?

Justin Thomas: Challenge the notion that 'men are from Mars, women are from Venus'

Checks continue

A High Court judge issued an interim order on Friday suspending a decision by Agriculture Minister Edwin Poots to direct a stop to Brexit agri-food checks at Northern Ireland ports.

Mr Justice Colton said he was making the temporary direction until a judicial review of the minister's unilateral action this week to order a halt to port checks that are required under the Northern Ireland Protocol.

Civil servants have yet to implement the instruction, pending legal clarity on their obligations, and checks are continuing.

KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI

National Editorial: Suleimani has been killed, now we must de-escalate

Mina Al Oraibi: Air strike casts a long shadow over the decade ahead

Jack Moore: Why the assassination is such a monumental gamble

Matthew Levitt: Iran retains its ability to launch terror attacks

Damien McElroy: A CEO tasked with spreading Iran's influence

Hussein Ibish: Trump's order on solid constitutional ground

Simon Waldman: Cautious Israel keeping a low profile

Rashmee Roshan Lall: Sound of silence in South Asia

Richard Olson: Why Afghanistan will be very wary

'Panga'

Directed by Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari

Starring Kangana Ranaut, Richa Chadha, Jassie Gill, Yagya Bhasin, Neena Gupta

Rating: 3.5/5

Evacuations to France hit by controversy

Over 500 Gazans have been evacuated to France since November 2023
Evacuations were paused after a student already in France posted anti-Semitic content and was subsequently expelled to Qatar
The Foreign Ministry launched a review to determine how authorities failed to detect the posts before her entry
Artists and researchers fall under a programme called Pause that began in 2017
It has benefited more than 700 people from 44 countries, including Syria, Turkey, Iran, and Sudan
Since the start of the Gaza war, it has also included 45 Gazan beneficiaries
Unlike students, they are allowed to bring their families to France

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets

More from our Neighbourhood series:

Catch of the day at Ajman Fish Market

Shiite district of Abu Dhabi proves tolerance is 'not just a UAE catchphrase'

Khalidiya's 'Starbucks square' nestled among Abu Dhabi's high-rises

The village community hidden among the skyscrapers of Dubai

More on this story:

Special report: Unwed expat mothers in legal limbo hope new visa laws will help them

A mother’s plea for her children ‘illegally’ in UAE to be sent home to India

Overstay visa families told to settle cases before seeking amnesty

Zayed Sustainability Prize

Youth take centre stage for this year's Zayed Sustainability Prize

What is the Zayed Sustainability Prize?

The burning issue

The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE.

Read part four: an affection for classic cars lives on

Read part three: the age of the electric vehicle begins

Read part one: how cars came to the UAE