Lionel Messi handed invitation from Newell's Old Boys: Come here like Diego Maradona did!

The vice-president of Argentine club Newell's Old Boys says he hopes Barcelona forward Lionel Messi will be back with his boyhood team one day.

Messi left Newell's to join Barca at the age of 13, but has often expressed a desire to play at the Rosario-based side before he finishes his career.

"I don't know if it is impossible. It is all up to him and his family," Cristian D'Amico told TNT Sports.

"As directors we have to provide the best context possible to help him make a decision. When [Diego] Maradona came to Newell's, nobody thought he could come.

"I hope that something similar can happen with Leo."

Messi is under contract at Barcelona until the summer of 2021 and the Catalan club hope he will sign a new deal to extend his career at Camp Nou.

The six-time Ballon d'Or winner may decide to wait until after the elections next summer, with a return to Newell's a possibility if he decides not to continue in Catalunya.

"Obviously we shouldn't be making things up, this is a delicate subject," D'Amico said.

"What Newell's fan doesn't dream of seeing the world's best player in their team's colours? Time will tell maybe, we have to stay calm."

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