Happy New Year.

I think we’re all glad to see the back of 2020 as we enter 2021 with hope that life will soon return to normal.

The same applies to football, too.

Not having fans inside stadiums has diminished people’s interest in the game but we pray, in 2021, we will see attendances return to full capacity once again.

The new year also means the opening of the January transfer window.

Clubs are now able to sign players freely and strengthen their ranks halfway through the current campaign.

It also means that those players whose contracts expire at the end of the season can now negotiate a pre-contract with any foreign club.

One of those players is Lionel Messi.

The Argentine’s contract at Barcelona expires in the summer and it looks increasingly likely he will walk away from the Camp Nou.

And now, as of today, he is free to negotiate a contract with any club outside of Spain.

Imagine: you can effectively sign the greatest player to have ever played the game for absolutely nothing.

Messi’s agent’s phone is surely blowing up this morning.

While he can negotiate with his potential next club, it seems Messi will wait until the end of the season to make his big decision.

"Nothing will be crystal clear before the end of the year. I'll wait until the season is over," he told Spanish TV station La Sexta recently.

"What matters now is thinking about the team, finishing the year well and not being distracted by other things.

"I don't know what will happen. I'm focused on what we have here and battling for whatever we can.

"I'm not thinking about how the year will end. As of today, it wouldn't be wise for me to say what I'm going to do because I don't know."

That won’t stop clubs from trying this month.