Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has admitted he will be the first person on the phone to Lionel Messi if the world’s best player signals his wish to leave Barcelona in the future.
As Guardiola returns to the Nou Camp on Wednesday for only the second time as an opposition manager, convinced Barcelona will provide a yardstick of how far his City side have come in a few months, the Catalan raised the prospect of a sensational move for Messi down the line.
Although Guardiola confirmed he moved for Barcelona goalkeeper Claudio Bravo after his first choice target, Marc-Andre ter Stegen, rebuffed his advances in order to remain at the Nou Camp this summer, Guardiola refuted claims by Spanish newspaper Mundo Deportivo last month that he had tapped up Messi, Neymar and other Barcelona stars.
As Guardiola returns to the Nou Camp on Wednesday for only the second time as an opposition manager, convinced Barcelona will provide a yardstick of how far his City side have come in a few months, the Catalan raised the prospect of a sensational move for Messi down the line.
Although Guardiola confirmed he moved for Barcelona goalkeeper Claudio Bravo after his first choice target, Marc-Andre ter Stegen, rebuffed his advances in order to remain at the Nou Camp this summer, Guardiola refuted claims by Spanish newspaper Mundo Deportivo last month that he had tapped up Messi, Neymar and other Barcelona stars.
Barcelona keeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen turned Guardiola down this summer
Yet it is understood that City’s
hierarchy believe they would be in pole position to buy Messi in the
event he opted to take up a fresh challenge, a move Guardiola would
clearly welcome and one Barcelona defender Gerard Pique acknowledged
City would have the financial might to pull off.
“If you are talking about this summer, I never called Messi, I never called Neymar, Luis Suarez, Busquets, Iniesta, I didn’t call anybody,” the City manager said.
“As for Ter Stegen, I knew that he wanted to play all the time. We got in touch. He wasn't happy with his situation. We needed a goalkeeper like Claudio or Ter Stegen. Claudio came and Ter Stegen decided to stay.
“If you are talking about this summer, I never called Messi, I never called Neymar, Luis Suarez, Busquets, Iniesta, I didn’t call anybody,” the City manager said.
“As for Ter Stegen, I knew that he wanted to play all the time. We got in touch. He wasn't happy with his situation. We needed a goalkeeper like Claudio or Ter Stegen. Claudio came and Ter Stegen decided to stay.
“If I ever called a player playing in any other club it would be in a
special situation of [him] not playing, and it would be my right to. It
is okay, I could have phoned someone if he was not playing, but I never
called Leo Messi.
“In the case of Leo, I really wish him to play here and finish his career here [at Barcelona]. But maybe he will think, ‘OK, I want to go play somewhere else’ because maybe he wants his kids to speak English or live a different experience, like has happened to many of us.
“Maybe it could happen, but if he decides to go and it happens, there would be a list of seven or eight clubs that would want to sign him, and it would be down to him. Messi will decide where to go.”
“In the case of Leo, I really wish him to play here and finish his career here [at Barcelona]. But maybe he will think, ‘OK, I want to go play somewhere else’ because maybe he wants his kids to speak English or live a different experience, like has happened to many of us.
“Maybe it could happen, but if he decides to go and it happens, there would be a list of seven or eight clubs that would want to sign him, and it would be down to him. Messi will decide where to go.”
Pique said he would not be
surprised if City made every effort to entice Messi. “A club with the
financial capacity like Manchester City can sign any player in the world
and it’s no surprise they focus on players from Barcelona,” he said. “I
wouldn’t be surprised if they tried to sign players from Barcelona, not
because Pep is family here, but because it would be stupid not to think
that.”
Messi was instrumental in giving Guardiola’s Bayern Munich what he described as a “whipping” in the first leg of their Champions League semi-final in May last year, when the Argentina maestro scored twice and set up the final goal for Neymar in a 3-0 win.
Pablo Zabaleta, the City right back and Messi’s Argentina team-mate, said they will have to play the “perfect game” to keep Messi, Neymar and Luis Suarez quiet and Guardiola insisted the game would provide a clear barometer of the strides his side have made since he took charge at the Etihad Stadium in July. Barcelona top Group C with six points while City have four.
Messi was instrumental in giving Guardiola’s Bayern Munich what he described as a “whipping” in the first leg of their Champions League semi-final in May last year, when the Argentina maestro scored twice and set up the final goal for Neymar in a 3-0 win.
Pablo Zabaleta, the City right back and Messi’s Argentina team-mate, said they will have to play the “perfect game” to keep Messi, Neymar and Luis Suarez quiet and Guardiola insisted the game would provide a clear barometer of the strides his side have made since he took charge at the Etihad Stadium in July. Barcelona top Group C with six points while City have four.
Pablo Zabaleta (L) says City will have to play the perfect game to get a result “I need to know my team as quickly as possible and this a good test
to know our level against one of the best teams, in my view the best
team,” Guardiola said.Guardiola believes Barcelona are a
better team under coach Luis Enrique than the side he left behind in
2012 after winning 14 out of the 19 trophies he contested but has vowed
to take his former club on at their own game “with some adjustments”.
City lost all four of their Round of 16 knockout ties against Barcelona
under Manuel Pellegrini but Enrique expects them to provide much stiffer
competition under Guardiola and said he “can’t imagine a better game
for any football fan”.
“It’s not first time we have faced each other, Luis gave me a bit of
whipping the first time but I had no doubts he would do well here,”
Guardiola said. “He is doing many things better than I was doing but I
hope we can cause an upset or give him a scare.
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