Ronald Koeman allegedly informed Lionel Messi that his "privileges" were over before the Argentine formally requested a transfer away from Barcelona.
After weeks of speculation, it was announced on Tuesday evening that the 33-year-old had asked to leave Camp Nou during the summer window.
Despite Barcelona wishing to retain the services of their best ever player, there are suggestions that the forward could be sold for a fee in the region of £200m.
According to Diario Ole, Messi made the final call on his future after what has been described as a frank discussion with Koeman.
The report claims that the newly-appointed boss told Messi: "Your privileges in the squad are over, you have to do everything for the team. I'm going to be inflexible, you have to think about the team."
Manchester City, Inter Milan, Paris Saint-Germain and Manchester United are all said to be monitoring the situation.
Written by
Darren Plant
Darren Plant
