Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi could once again take on each other at Camp Nou on August 9, 2021, for the finals of Joan Gamper Trophy 2021 Finals. This will be an exhibition match that Barcelona and Juventus will play at Camp Nou. But that would only happen if Barcelona announces Messi's contract before August 9, 2021. For more than a month now, Lionel Messi is not been a part of the Barcelona squad after his contract with the Catalans came to an end. Lionel Messi Contract Talks ‘Progressing Adequately’ Says Barcelona President Joan Laporta.

The Argentine has been a free agent since his £500,000-a-week contract expired on June 30. Ever since Juan Laporta has been working on the contract with Messi and he had even said that everything is on contract. The new contract apparently has Messi accepting the pay cut by 50 percent. In fact, on June 30, 2021, the press had been after Juan Laporta asking him for a media byte about Messi's contract. The Argentine had last featured in the Copa America 2021 finals against Brazil and he had won the finals.

The last time the two teams met each other in the Champions League 2020-21 at the Juventus Training Centre, Juventus ran away with a 3-0 win in which Cristiano Ronaldo had scored a couple of goals in the match. Prior to that in the first round, the two teams met each other at Camp Nou with Barcelona walking away with a 2-0 win. Ousmane Dembele and Lionel Messi were the ones who scored goals for the team. Back then, CR7 was not a part of the squad.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jul 27, 2021 03:09 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).