Barcelona president Josep Maria Bartomeu joked that Lionel Messi will get 10 statues erected at the renovated Nou Camp to highlight his innate contributions for the Blaugrana.
After his sublime brace against Liverpool in Wednesday, which included a sensational 35-yard free-kick that he curled into the top bins to make it 3-0, Messi has now scored a staggering 600 goals for the club to go with the 33 trophies he has collected so far.
There will never be be another like him and it's only right that Barcelona properly commemorate his legacy when he finally hangs up his boots.
Asked whether Barca will have a statue built when the Nou Camp is extended to a 105,000 capacity as well as a roof being added, Bartomeu told The Guardian: "There will be 10 of them!
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"I wouldn't even give him the Ballon d'Or. He's beyond that now, in a category of his own. There are great players, but he's in a different dimension."
In the same interview, the 56-year-old said that Messi will "never leave" Barcelona and "might even" play until he's 45 years old:
"He might even play until he's 45, who knows?" Bartomeu claimed.
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"We know he'll play three, four, five years more, we don't know how many - as many as he wants. We're preparing: players like [Ousmane] Dembélé, [Clément] Lenglet, Arthur are there to build a team for when Messi stops playing, but I still see it as a long way off.
"I don't think that day is near. And we tell the players who play and train with him: 'Make the most of every minute.'
"We are talking to the family but it's very early to say. He's a footballer. So we talk football. But he will stay here with us. He's a club man."
The day that Messi finally calls it a day will be a sad one but at least he'll get a load of statues out of it...
Featured Image Credit:Topics: Football News, Nou Camp, FC Barcelona, Football, Barcelona, Messi, Lionel Messi
