Emotional Lionel Messi says he wasn't prepared to leave Barcelona
Madrid, Aug 8 (AP): Struggling to control his emotions, Lionel Messi said Sunday in his farewell to Barcelona that he wasn't prepared to leave the club.
Messi began crying even before he started speaking at his farewell ceremony at the Camp Nou Stadium.
This is very hard for me after so many years, after being here my entire life, he said.
I wasn't prepared.
Messi called his unexpected departure from the club the most difficult moment of his career. Messi's family and some of his teammates were at the Camp Nou for the player's farewell.
Messi avoided speaking specifically about his future, saying he received offers from several clubs after the announcement that he would leave the Catalan club.
Barcelona announced Thursday it could not keep its greatest player because it wasn't able to fit a new contract within the Spanish league's financial fair-play regulations. The club's salary cap has been significantly slashed because of its huge debt. President Joan Laporta blamed the club's struggles on the coronavirus pandemic and particularly on the previous administration led by Josep Bartomeu.
Messi asked to leave at the end of the 2019-20 season but had his request denied by Bartomeu. The Argentina star had agreed to stay and had reached agreement with Barcelona on a new contract, but the club wasn't able to make it work because of its dire financial situation.
Messi spent nearly two decades with the Catalan club after arriving from Argentina as a teenager to play in its youth squads. He made his first-team debut as a 17-year-old in 2004, then played 17 seasons with the main squad. He helped the club win the Champions League four times, the Spanish league 10 times, the Copa del Rey seven times and the Spanish Super Cup eight times.
Messi leaves as Barcelona's all-time leading scorer with 672 goals. He played in 778 matches with the club, also a record. He is also the overall top scorer in the Spanish league with 474 goals from 520 matches.
He led the Spanish league in scoring in eight seasons, and was the top scorer in the Champions League six times. His 26 goals against Real Madrid are a record for the clasico matches against Barcelona's fiercest rival.
Lionel Messi receives a standing ovation at farewell news conference ?❤️️pic.twitter.com/KEtSF9aR0D
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) August 8, 2021
This is the word of Leo #Messi: pic.twitter.com/k0btQ7k1py
— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) August 8, 2021
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Sensex, Nifty extend gains for 3rd day on strong global cues, lower US inflation
Mumbai, Jan 16: Equity benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty rallied for the third session on the trot on Thursday, helped by a rally in global markets after lower-than-expected consumer inflation in the US ignited hopes of more rate cuts by the Federal Reserve.
Intense buying in Reliance Industries, ICICI Bank and HDFC Bank also boosted sentiments, traders said.
The 30-share BSE index climbed 318.74 points or 0.42 per cent to revisit 77,000 level at 77,042.82. During the day, it jumped 595.42 points or 0.77 per cent to 77,319.50.
On the similar lines, the NSE Nifty rallied 98.60 points or 0.42 per cent to 23,311.80.
As many as 2,778 stocks advanced, while 1,188 declined and 101 remained unchanged on the BSE.
Unabated foreign fund inflows, weakness in the rupee and elevated global crude prices continue to weigh on domestic equity markets, traders said.
"Benchmark indices continued to trade in the positive, albeit off highs, driven by positive investor sentiment following mild US inflation data, which raised hopes for a potential rate cut by the Federal Reserve.
"Additionally, favourable developments in the Israel-Hamas ceasefire and a reduced trade deficit further boosted the market's upward movement. However, weak economic growth data from the UK dampened some of this optimism," Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Financial Services, said.
From the 30-share blue-chip pack, Adani Ports, State Bank of India, Bajaj Finserv, Bharti Airtel, Tata Motors, IndusInd Bank, NTPC, Maruti, Reliance Industries and Axis Bank were the biggest gainers.
In contrast, HCL Tech, Nestle, Infosys, Hindustan Unilever, ITC and Tata Consultancy Services were among the laggards.
IT services major Infosys on Thursday reported an 11.46 per cent year-on-year increase in consolidated net profit to Rs 6,806 crore in the October-December quarter of FY25.
Shares of Infosys slipped 1.21 per cent to settle at Rs 1,926.20 apiece on the BSE.
Meanwhile, Adani group stocks rallied on Thursday after Hindenburg Research founder Nate Anderson announced that he would disband the firm, which made international waves with campaigns targeting billionaire Gautam Adani that wiped billions from the market value of his group companies.
Shares of NDTV surged 9.15 per cent, Ambuja Cements jumped 3.88 per cent, Adani Green Energy rallied 3.35 per cent, Sanghi Industries climbed 3.34 per cent and Adani Power went up by 2.45 per cent on the BSE.
The stock of Adani Ports advanced 2.03 per cent, Adani Total Gas (1.78 per cent), Adani Enterprises (1.74 per cent), Adani Energy Solutions (1.54 per cent) and ACC (0.77 per cent).
Shares of Adani Wilmar, however, declined 1.19 per cent.
"Nifty has regained momentum, closing at 23,312, buoyed by demand and reclaiming the 23,300 mark, as Wall Street's strong performance helped bulls take charge. Risk-on sentiments were sparked by cooler-than-expected US CPI inflation data for December, easing concerns about rising inflation and boosting expectations that the Fed might continue its rate-cutting cycle throughout the year.
"This, coupled with a weaker US dollar (now at 109) and a drop in the 10-year US bond yield to 4.65 per cent, has further strengthened investor confidence," Prashanth Tapse, Senior VP (Research), Mehta Equities Ltd, said.
The BSE smallcap gauge jumped 1.43 per cent while the midcap index climbed 0.92 per cent.
Among BSE sectoral indices, services jumped 1.93 per cent, industrials (1.73 per cent), metal (1.63 per cent), telecommunication (1.61 per cent), capital goods (1.56 per cent) and commodities (1.51 per cent).
IT, Consumer durables, teck and BSE-focused IT were the laggards.
"The Nifty continued its upward momentum for the third straight session, closing 98 points higher (0.42 per cent) at 23,311, driven by positive global sentiment. Asian markets tracked Wall Street's gains, responding favourably to US core inflation data that reinforced expectations of potential Federal Reserve rate cuts in 2025," Devarsh Vakil, Head of Prime Research, HDFC Securities, said.
In Asian markets, Seoul, Tokyo, Shanghai and Hong Kong settled in the positive territory.
Equity markets in Europe were quoting higher. US markets rallied on Wednesday.
Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth Rs 4,533.49 crore on Wednesday, according to exchange data.
The rupee depreciated 16 paise to close at 86.56 (provisional) against the US dollar on Thursday.
Global oil benchmark Brent crude dipped 0.18 per cent to USD 81.88 a barrel.
In the previous session, the BSE benchmark rose 224.45 points or 0.29 per cent to settle at 76,724.08 on Wednesday. The Nifty advanced 37.15 points or 0.16 per cent to 23,213.20.
