Barcelona president Joan Laporta has stated that the club is Messi’s “home” as the team looks to re-sign him this summer.

The Argentine’s contract with Paris St-Germain expires in June, and reports have linked him to a move to Saudi Arabia.

However, in an interview with TV3, Laporta stated that Barcelona will compete with anyone for the 35-year-old’s signature.

“History backs us up, the emotions are too strong, and we have 400 million fans all over the world,” he remarked.

Messi left the Catalan giants after 21 years, but has struggled in his two seasons in France, with fans booing him during their 5-0 win against Ajaccio at the weekend.

Laporta stated that the two had a “affectionate conversation” and that he congratulated Messi for winning the World Cup in Qatar last year.

“He is a Paris St-Germain player, and we have to wait until the end of the season, until it’s over, and then we can talk more calmly about this,” Laporta added.

“With all due respect to Saudi Arabia, Barcelona is Barca, and it is home.”

Barcelona won their first La Liga title in four years with a 4-2 victory over Espanyol on Sunday.

Laporta was more restrained than he was during a late-night Twitch stream following the victory, during which he is alleged to have claimed the club will do “everything possible” to sign Messi.