Barcelona head coach Xavi Hernandez believes Lionel Messi making a return to the Catalan giants makes a lot of sporting sense.

Messi swapped Barcelona for Paris Saint-Germain in 2021 on the back of La Blaugrana's ailing financial situation and has been linked with a potential return in the summer.

The 35-year-old scored the goal which confirmed PSG as French champions despite playing out a 1-1 draw with Strasbourg. Despite bagging two Ligue 1 titles in two seasons, Messi is set to leave the club in the coming weeks, with Barcelona, Al Hilal, and David Beckham's Inter Miami all circling around the player for his signature.

Sharing his opinion on Messi retracing his steps to Camp Nou, Xavi, who guided Barca to their first league crown since 2019, stressed the importance of adding the Argentine phenom to his roster next season.

"I always talk to Messi. I told Laporta that Leo's [Barca] comeback makes a lot of sense to me. He is still a winner, a leader and a hungry player," Xavi told Diario Sport, as quoted by Tribuna.

"Perhaps he [Messi] has been losing his explosiveness, but we also saw a Messi in the extraordinary World Cup, with explosiveness.
"In the end, I think he still has years ahead of him at a high level. Today there aren't any doubts that he would help us," the Barca boss added.

According to Sky Sports, Messi is set to leave his current club Paris Saint-Germain at the end of his contract, and Barcelona are keen on landing the seven-time Ballon d'Or winner.