If reports are to be believed, Barcelona and Lionel Messi’s long marriage will continue. That news came out on Wednesday, as the Argentine is said to be set to sign a five-year deal that will keep him at the club until the age of 39. Should he remain to play there that long, it would be 26 years with the team, a ridiculous amount of time in any era but particularly this one in which players jump from one club to the next very often.

The deal for the recent Copa America winner is said to be a greatly reduced one in terms of his wages, as the team is in a perilous financial situation. This is a far cry from last summer when it was heavily rumored that he was interested in leaving to go elsewhere. Now, he appears to be helping the club out, and that just goes to show how tight that relationship is, even when it is far from perfect. Even with Messi, many don’t expect Barca to make a big run next season, but they sure would have struggled without him.