For the first time since he joined the club two decades ago, rumors have suggested that Messi's discontent at Barcelona's poor performance last season could lead to the club's star player deciding that his future lies away from the Catalan club. 

Backroom rancor and discontent under former boss Quique Setien came to a head following Barcelona's humiliating 8-2 UEFA Champions League defeat to Bayern Munich last week.

It led to a cull of several staff members, including Setien and technical secretary Eric Abidal.

The new man in the Barca dugout, Dutchman Ronald Koeman, knows that Messi's sanctioning of his "project" at the Camp Nou will be crucial to his success at the helm of the club - and the new man in charge reportedly summoned Messi from his summer vacation for crunch showdown talks this week. 

Koeman has been keen to ensure that details of his top-level talks with his club captain are kept under wraps but, according to Barcelona beat reporter Marcal Lorente – a man understood to have close ties to the club's board – the club has deemed their prized asset "untransferable."