Manchester City are keen on securing Lionel Messi for next year.
It seems as if Manchester City has not given up their plans to strengthen their squad with arguably the world’s best player, Lionel Messi. The 33-year-old was on the brink of leaving his current club and the English club was ready with a contract. However, the move was ultimately blocked and thus City have decided to pursue the player again in January.
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In the August of 2020, Barcelona suffered a horrendous 8-2 defeat to Bayern Munich in the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals. This was enough to make their most loyal player, file in an official request to move away from the club. At that time Messi’s contract allowed him to leave for free at the end of the season however, ex-president, Josep Bartomeu objected to his decision and threatened a lawsuit against the player.
Not wanting to take his childhood club to the court, the Argentine took the high road and decided to honor the last year of his contract. Some Barcelona fans were outraged by Bartomeu’s actions while some praised his tactics to keep Messi. However, what all fans of the Catalan side can agree upon is that Messi is arguably their most talented asset, and losing him would create havoc in the club. This nightmare is slowly turning into a reality as Sheik Mansour and his team are getting ready to bid on the player in the winter transfer market.
Why are Man City so eager for Lionel Messi?
The reason for spending so much effort on bringing in a player who only has a few more years to give is due to their manager, Pep Guardiola. The Citizens witnessed a completely revamped game style after Guardiola became their manager in 2016. Since then, the Spanish tactician using his immense knowledge and high pressing game style made City one of the best teams in Europe. Their dominance in the Premier League scared all the elite teams but for some reason, they still could not get their hands on the prestigious Champions League trophy.
Guardiola is now reaching the end of his contract and has only one year left. The City administration is desperate to keep him but the 48-year-old has yet to reach an agreement. The former English champions are hoping to show their trust in the coach by bringing in one of his favourite players. They are also hoping that adding Messi to the team will finally bring them European glory, for which they have been searching for many years.
It all seems very tragic for Barcelona as they might actually be willing to sell off their legend in order to pay off the massive 437 million pounds debt that they have amassed. Messi could be seen wearing a blue shirt by January as he has not stated that he wants to remain at the club and the Spanish giants would not want to let him go for free.
Though Messi will most probably wait until the end of the season to finalize his decision regarding his future, City are hoping to persuade the Catalan giants by offering them money instead of risking Leo’s departure for free in the Summer of 2021.
Should Barca sell Messi to gain transfer fee from his departure or let him leave for free at the end of the season?