Atletico Madrid president Enrique Cerezo has opened the door for Lionel Messi to reunite with former Barcelona teammate Luis Suarez at the Wanda Metropolitano.
Despite his best efforts, Messi saw a move away from Barca blocked by the club earlier this summer and will now see out the last year of his contract at the very least.
Suarez was allowed to move on in a cut-price transfer, though, with Atletico snapping up the Uruguay international for a bargain £5.5m on a two-year deal.
Cerezo has praised Barca for the way they conducted their business and says he would be happy to welcome Messi to the club at the end of the season.
"In life, if you want something... If Leo Messi wants to play with Luis Suarez, I tell him the same thing that is said with nougat: 'Let him come home for Christmas'. With desire, anything is possible," he told Cadena Cope.
"Everything [with the Suarez signing] went perfectly well. [Josep Maria] Bartomeu is a good friend and a great president.
"At the moment things are not going well at Barcelona, but he has acted as he had to act and nothing else has happened. The signing was not complicated, the player plays where he wanted to play."
Suarez marked his Atleti debut with two goals and an assist in Sunday's 6-1 win over Granada.
Daniel Lewis
