Lionel Messi
Barcelona prepare final offer to land Lautaro Martinez from Inter
Barcelona are preparing a final offer for Lautaro Martinez, with the beleaguered Blaugrana ready to test Inter’s resolve as they prepare for life without Luis Suarez at the head of their attack. New boss Ronald Koeman recently made it clear to the Uruguayan, despite him being close friends with wantaway Lionel Messi, that he would no longer be a key player for the Catalans and should attempt to find a new club. And although Lyon attacker Memphis Depay has been mooted as a potential successor due to his ties with Koeman, Goal reports that Lautaro remains at the top Barca’s wishlist, with the Argentine seen as a complete centre-forward in the precise mould the club are looking for. There are many complications in the way, however, the most notable of which being the fact that Suarez still ha...
Gary Lineker reacts to Lionel Messi’s Barcelona decision
Gary Lineker has taken to Twitter to give his reaction to Barcelona superstar Lionel Messi’s interview about his future to Goal.com yesterday. On Friday, Messi gave an extensive interview to Goal.com in which he explained why he wanted to leave Barcelona in the summer transfer window. The Argentina international forward also stated that he will stay at Barcelona this season and fulfil his contract. The 33-year-old has been on the books of the Spanish giants his entire professional club football career and is out of contract at Camp Nou next summer. Former Barcelona striker Lineker has taken to Twitter to give his reaction to Messi’s interview to Goal.com. Just caught up with the extraordinary Messi interview. After all he’s done for the club, over almost 2 decades, it’s such a shame that @...
Napoli president confirms Kalidou Koulibaly, Arkadiusz Milik are ‘on the way out’
In what will come as interesting news to Manchester City, Juventus and Roma, Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis has confirmed that Kalidou Koulibaly and Arkadiusz Milik are both poised to leave the club. Napoli and City have been haggling over a fee for Koulibaly for a number of weeks and it seems a compromise is close to being reached, with Napoli reportedly demanding in the region of €80m for the defender. While Milik has been linked with a move to Roma as a potential replacement for Edin Džeko, or to Juve as a replacement for Gonzalo Higuaín. “Koulibaly and Milik are both on their way out, transfer market permitting,” De Laurentiis told Canale 21 on Wednesday. “So, if the transfer market allows us to sell these two excellent players, we will know how to replace them. If not, then we...
Real Madrid skipper Sergio Ramos hopes Leo Messi stays at Barcelona
Real Madrid captain Sergio Ramos insists he wants Lionel Messi to stay at Barcelona, for the good of LaLiga. Messi’s father Jorge flew into Barcelona on Wednesday for crunch talks with club president Josep Maria Bartomeu, with the player’s camp reportedly hoping to engineer a move to Manchester City. But when asked about the situation at Spain’s pre-Germany press conference, Los Blancos skipper Ramos gave a surprising answer. “This doesn’t concern us,” Ramos told reporters. “He’s earned the right to decide his future, I don’t know if he’s doing it in the best possible way, but Spanish football, Barcelona and Real Madrid players – because we want to face the best – want him to stay. “He makes LaLiga better, his team is better with him and El Clásico is more beautiful with him. “I have nothi...
Who will win the 2021 Ballon d’Or? Here are the top six candidates
The decision to cancel the Ballon d’Or award for 2020 left fans across the world wondering who would have picked up the prestigious prize. Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo have dominated proceedings in recent times, winning the award 11 times between them over the past 12 years. Both players were in the conversation this time around, although it would have been a surprise if either of them had added to their tally. Robert Lewandowski appeared to be a good bet after scoring 55 goals in 47 appearances to help Bayern Munich win the treble. The Polish striker is expected to be a strong contender in 2021, but which other players are likely to challenge him? Read on as we take a closer look. <div align=”center”><iframe width=”600″ height=”350″ src=”https://www.youtube.com/embed/SbhOZj...
Gary Neville: I hope Lionel Messi doesn’t do very well for Manchester City
Gary Neville cannot see his former employers at Manchester United joining the race for Lionel Messi and hopes the mercurial Argentine “doesn’t do very well” if he ends up leaving Barcelona for Manchester City. A switch to England continues to be mooted for the six-time Ballon d’Or winner. Messi has informed those at Camp Nou of his desire to move on, with further talks set to be held with the Liga club’s board as he mulls over his options during a period of personal frustration. Neville believes a compromise will be reached that keeps the South American in Catalunya, with an all-time great merely “flexing his muscles” and sending warning signals to the Blaugrana. If a stunning switch were to be made, though, then the ex-United defender concedes that the Ethiad Stadium – alongside one-time ...
Atletico Madrid to battle Juventus for Barcelona star
Atletico Madrid are considering a shock move for Barcelona star Luis Suarez, if the Uruguayan international leaves the Camp Nou this summer. Suarez has been linked with an exit from the Camp Nou, as part of a wider reshuffle of the squad by new manager Ronald Koeman ahead of the 2020-21 season. Serie A giants Juventus are rumoured to be monitoring the situation with Suarez’s future in Catalonia, however as per the front page of Saturday’s edition of Diario AS, Atletico are keen. Both clubs will keep an eye on the evolving changes between Suarez and Koeman, with club captain Lionel Messi aslo reportedly unhappy at Suarez’s potential departure as part of his own exit talks. The former Liverpool man is into the final year of his contract with the Catalans, and at 33 years of age, he might not...
Manchester United ‘focusing on Jadon Sancho not Lionel Messi’
Manchester United are maintaining focus on signing Jadon Sancho from Borussia Dortmund, despite reported interest in Lionel Messi. The Argentine has handed in an official transfer request to leave Barcelona after 20 years. United are one of a number of clubs linked with the 33-year-old. But Sancho remains United’s top target, according to Sky Sports presenter Kavel Solhekol. “The next Premier League club: Manchester United,” Solhekol said on The Transfer Show. “No comment from them as far as any potential move for Lionel Messi is concerned. “Our information is that they’re No 1 target remains Jadon Sancho but of course potentially, Manchester United do have the finances to be able to do a deal.” Get more stories like this on Twitter You Deserve to Make Money Even When you are looking for D...
Bayern Munich make Lionel Messi transfer decision
Bayern Munich will not be making an audacious swoop to sign Lionel Messi from Barcelona as they simply can’t afford it, according to club CEO Karl-Heinz Rummenigge. On Tuesday, Messi sent a fax to Barca officials indicating his desire to leave the club, requesting that he be let out of his contract. The Argentine is unhappy at the decline of the Blaugrana on the field, as in 2019/20 they failed to win any major silverware for the first time in 12 years. He is also disillusioned with how the club is being run at boardroom level. It was actually Bayern who arguably caused the final straw for Messi as it was the German side’s 8-2 destruction of Barca in the Champions League which led to Quique Setien being fired and then the player handing in his request to leave. Only a handful of clubs arou...
Manchester City, Inter Milan favourites to sign Lionel Messi
Manchester City and Inter are considered the favourites to sign Lionel Messi, according to The Independent. The 33-year-old shocked the world of football when he outlined his intention to leave Barcelona after 20 years at the club on Tuesday. There is confidence within Messi’s camp that the clause in his contract that would allow the Argentine to leave Barça for free will be triggered. However, the Catalans believe that clause has expired and will demand a transfer fee of around €700m for Messi. Manchester City are believed to be working on structuring a deal and the report states that a reunion with Pep Guardiola seems to be the most likely option if Messi does end up leaving the Camp Nou. Guardiola is believed to have been in contact with Messi in recent weeks to discuss a potential move...
Lionel Messi makes contact with Pep Guardiola over Manchester City move
Lionel Messi has reportedly already been in touch with Pep Guardiola over a possible switch from Barcelona to Manchester City this summer. City are among the contenders to sign the 33-year-old after he allegedly handed in a formal transfer request on Tuesday. The Argentina international enjoyed illustrious success playing under Guardiola at Barca between 2008 and 2012, winning four of his six Ballons d’Or during that period. According to Radio Catalunya, Messi has been in touch with the Catalan coach about reuniting at the Etihad Stadium in the coming weeks. Messi’s contract stipulated that he could leave on a free transfer this summer, but Barca insist that clause expired in June and it may now be a case of City waiting 12 more months. Manchester United and Paris Saint-Germain are also be...
Luis Figo on whether Messi would ever join Real Madrid
Barcelona star Lionel Messi is reportedly unhappy at the Camp Nou and he is thought to be seriously considering an exit from the club where he has spent the entirety of his career. Messi’s contract with the Spanish club comes to an end next summer. Even as Barcelona have quickly brought in Ronald Koeman as the new manager after a poor season, Messi is increasingly disillusioned with Barcelona’s top management over the last couple of years. Luis Figo himself says that it is unlikely that Messi would consider going down the route that he took. According to Marca, Figo said: “This year, it’s impossible for a club to meet Messi’s release clause. “I think it’s almost impossible that he’ll do something similar to what happened with me 20 years ago.” There is an increasing likelihood of Messi lea...
