Lionel Messi is "excited" by the prospect of Joan Laporta winning Barcelona's upcoming presidential election, although he "will not publicly back" any of the candidates ahead of Saturday's vote, according to Ben Hayward of Goal.
Current Barca chief Josep Maria Bartomeu is on course to retain the presidency. He accumulated 8,554 validated signatures up to the last count on July 8, compared to just 4,272 for Laporta, reported by Sport. However, the club's most important player is "keen" for the latter to return to the club he guided to era-defining success between 2003 and 2010.