Lionel Messi has revealed a secret visit to Barcelona's remodelled Spotify Camp Nou ahead of its reopening.
The Argentinian Blaugrana legend took to Instagram to share a photograph on the Camp Nou turf while declaring his love for the club.
Messi statement on Camp Nou return
Messi, now four years on from his Barca departure, accompanied the photographs with a heartfelt statement.
The caption read: “Last night I returned to a place I miss with my soul. A place where I was immensely happy, where you guys made me feel a thousand times the happiest person in the world
“I hope one day I can come back, and not just to say goodbye as a player, as I never got to…”
Indeed, the talisman's final home action for Barcelona came in an empty Camp Nou, having played the 2020-21 season behind closed doors in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, a season in which the Catalan giants finished third in La Liga and Copa del Rey.
On his exit for Paris Saint-Germain in 2021, Messi, who captained the Blaugrana for the final three years of his 21-year stay, Messi had turned out 382 times at the Camp Nou, winning 308 of those and racking up 396 goals and 135 assists.
Barcelona's return timeline?
The return to the new-look Spotify Camp Nou has been a long-running and contentious issue for Barca, who intially set out to host their league opener there in mid-August.
This was then pushed back on several occasions, firstly to a new target date in October, and since to a home meeting with Athletic Bilbao on November 2025, having seen their cause harmed by safety concerns, slow compliance with construction requirements and recent construction workers protests.
Having been forced to play home games early in the 2025-26 season at the Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys in the meantime, and 6,000-capacity reserve ground Johan Cruyff Arena on one occasion, due to the delays to the renovation, the end is now in sight for Barcelona. An open training session was played in front of over 21,000 supporters in the new Spotify Camp Nou on November 7.
It is now likely that the Catalan giants will be able to host Athletic Bilbao in their iconic home in late November, having last played there in May 2023.
FGG says: Feel-good moment for Blaugrana
For Barcelona fans, seeing Lionel Messi back at the famous ground which he called home for so long is bound to be an emotional one. The club's all-time leading appearance maker and scorer never got to bid his home fans farewell before leaving for PSG in 2021 amid the club's financial concerns at the time.
While a return in a playing capacity is a major longshot, given the Argentina captain has just signed a contract extension with Inter Miami taking his deal to December 2028, at which time he will be 41 years old, it is undoubtedly a homecoming worthy of celebration, and fans will hope to see Messi in the flesh once the Spotify Camp Nou is fully open.