Manchester City are said to be preparing a multi-faceted offer to tempt Lionel Messi away from Barcelona. The idea from the Premier League side is offer him a contract that would see him play with New York City, who are part of the City Group, after his time in England, according to Mundo Deportivo.
The Argentine’s contract with Barcelona ends in the summer so he can sign a pre-contract with whoever he wants come January 1st. Messi pushed for an exit last summer only to be foiled by a legal misunderstanding, and is said to be waiting until after Barcelona’s presidential elections at the end of January before making a decision. He wants to understand the direction the club are going in and his role within the new project.
Meanwhile, in England, City are preparing an offer that they hope will convince what many believe to be the greatest player to ever grace a football pitch to come to the north-west. Their proposal would see Messi spend an undefined number of seasons with Pep Guardiola‘s team before crossing the North Atlantic to end his career in MLS. The fresh rumours come days after Messi’s father, Jorge Messi, spoke out decrying what he labelled “fake news” linking his son with Paris Saint-Germain. “Stop lying!” read his social media post linking a story that claimed he had opened negotiations with the French champions over a potential transfer.
Messi, despite evidently slowing down as he begins to enter his mid-30s, registered 31 goals and 27 assists last season, from 44 appearances. The season before he scored 51 goals and contributed 20 assists from 50 games.
Featured image courtesy of The New York Times.
