“They knew he was going to finish his contract” – Agent says PL club offered €200 million to sign Lionel Messi year before he left Barcelona
Agent Andre Cury has claimed that Manchester City offered €200 million to Barcelona to sign Lionel Messi in 2020. Cury added that Barca didn't want to sell the Argentine, as they were confident about Messi seeing out his contract.
The Argentina captain's deal, though, expired in the summer of 2021. While Barca had an agreement in place to extend his deal, that didn't materialise due to La Liga's wage cap rules, so Messi had to leave as a free agent.
Messi completed a free transfer to Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) and spent two seasons in the French capital. The situation, though, could have been a lot different, as Cury said that Messi had an offer from the reigning English and European champions. Speaking on City's offer for the Argentine, Cury said (via Barca Universal):
"Barcelona had an offer from Manchester City of up to 200 million euros for Leo Messi a year before he left, and they didn’t want to sell him. A year before, they knew he was going to finish his contract.”
When Lionel Messi looked certain to leave PSG as a free agent in the summer of 2023, he was linked with a return to the Blaugrana.
Despite the reports, Messi ended up joining MLS club Inter Miami as a free agent, where he has hit the ground running. The Argentine has bagged five goals and an assist in three games.
What Jordi Alba said about reuniting with his former Barcelona teammate Lionel Messi
Lionel Messi has a few familiar faces from his Barcelona days at Inter Miami, as Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba have joined the MLS club. Moreover, Inter's current coach Tata Martino was in charge of the Blaugrana during the 2013-14 season.
Alba made his debut for Miami in the Leagues Cup Round of 32 game against Orlando City. Speaking about sharing the pitch with Messi once again after two years, Alba said:
“It is no longer surprising, but what Leo does is outrageous. After two years without playing together, today we have finally played together again, and now it’s time to enjoy a few more years together."
Messi bagged a brace against Orlando as he continued his blistering start to life in Florida. Messi and Co. will return to action on Sunday (August 6) when Miami take on FC Dallas in the Round of 16 of the Leagues Cup.