Barcelona may have the upper hand in the hunt for Lionel Messi as the forward prefers to continue playing at a high level in Europe, according to Kaveh Solhekol.

What's going on with Lionel Messi?

The Argentina superstar has been suspended by Paris Saint-Germain after flying to Saudi Arabia without permission, and is set to depart the club when his contract expires this summer.

It seems that the 35-year-old has three options: a move to Saudi Arabia, a move to MLS, or a return to Barcelona.

Given that Barcelona are still suffering financial problems, they would have to work hard to manouvre their wage bill in order to make space for Messi, but given that his ideal move seems to be a return to the Nou Camp, they may consider themselves in the driving seat.

Speaking on Sky Sports, Solhekol claimed that Messi still sees himself as able to compete in the Champions League, and an emotional return to Barcelona could be on the cards.

"Everything we're hearing is that he still feels that he can carry on playing at the very, very top level," he stated.

"He wants to carry on playing in Europe. Ideally he wants to carry on playing in the Champions League, so I've just got a funny feeling that if something can be sorted out with Barcelona, we would have this fairytale return of him going back to the club where his heart is."

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Should Barcelona sign Messi?

Despite the hatred he is currently receiving from PSG fans, Messi has contributed 39 goals and assists in 37 games for the Parisians this season, and his performances at the World Cup showed that he can still deliver extraordinary moments at the top level.

Barcelona could have a clearout this summer, and wide players Ferran Torres, Ansu Fati and Raphinha have all been linked with moves away.

If they are able to generate funds from these attackers, they will have space for Messi to rejoin. The main question is, whether it would be worth selling three younger players for a 35-year-old.

All three players have garnered criticism at times this season, and depending on the level of bids received for them, they could all be smart sales if Messi can continue his high level of output in the short term.

If Barcelona are confident that they will not regret any of these sales, Fati in particular, given that he is a La Masia product who was handed Messi's number 10 shirt, then re-signing their greatest ever player to boost their Champions League hopes next season may be a gamble worth taking.