Lionel Messi has admitted to being "hurt" by Joan Laporta's comments on his Barcelona exit, with the Paris Saint-Germain star insisting that he was never asked to play for the club for free.
Messi's 21-year stay at Barca came to an end in the summer as the club were unable to tie him down to a new contract amid a financial crisis that had seen them exceed La Liga's wage limit.
The 34-year-old subsequently joined PSG on a free transfer, but Laporta has since suggested that the legendary figure could have stayed at Camp Nou if he had been willing to go without a weekly salary.
When quizzed on Messi's move to Parc des Princes, the Barca president told RAC1 in October: "I hoped Messi would do a U-turn and he would say he would play for free.
"I would have liked that and I would have been all for it. It is my understanding La Liga would have accepted it. But we cannot ask a player of Messi's stature to do this."
