Football

Man City have no chance of signing Lionel Messi, says City director

Posted on

Man City director Ferran Soriano has confirmed his club have no plans to sign Lionel Messi, despite the star striker having a strong bond with former boss Pep Guardiola.

The Premier League leaders have been able to benefit from a generous transfer kitty in recent years, but even they will be unable to trigger Messi’s £625m release cause that he signed as part of a new deal with the Catalan side in November.


The Argentine’s new deal runs until the 2021-22 season, though the talismanic forward is expected to stay at the Camp Nou for life – unless he decides to finish his career with hometown club Newell’s Old Boys. NaijaBet.com

City have splashed the cash on the likes of Kyle Walker, Ederson and Benjamin Mendy. Their investments have been wholly fruitful, as they sit 16 points clear of the league table and are in strong contention to win the treble (League, League Cup and European Cup).

Rumours last year swirled over the possibility of Messi reuniting with Guardiola at the Etihad following apparent resistance to extend his Barcelona deal, but City director Soriano has confirmed that no transfer will be likely. NaijaBet.com

“There is no chance of signing Messi,” Soriano said, as reported by Goal.

“I know him and his family well and I know they are fine in Barcelona, which is where he needs to be.

“We will make our way without him, which will be more difficult because he is the best player in the history of football. NaijaBet.com


“He changed everything, he is a genius.”

Soriano made sure to hail Messi’s skill and achievements, but also gave credit to Guardiola’s abilities as a coach to draw the very best out of his players. NaijaBet.com

“The main characteristic of Guardiola is his work rate,” he continued. “He works more than anyone and sometimes people think that he is a genius, but it is because he works a lot.


“He knows that football is very cruel and when you relax, you [can] concede four goals. NaijaBet.com

“Patience is essential and one way to understand it is to see that the teams that have won consistently are not the ones that change a coach every two months or every year.

“The key is long-term planning and managers must have the strength to make the decisions they think are right, even though fans ask for something else.” NaijaBet.com

Messi was on the scoresheet against Chelsea in Barcelona’s 1-1 first leg last-16 tie at Stamford Bridge. The Catalan side will take a crucial away goal back to the Camp Nou this evening in the second leg.

Related Items:

Most Popular

To Top