Pep Guardiola wants Lionel Messi to join Manchester City if he decides to leave Barcelona

Posted Wednesday, October 19, 2016 by Express.co.uk

Pep Guardiola wants Lionel Messi to join Manchester City if he decides to leave Barcelona
Guardiola denied being in contact with Messi over a potential move in the summer

MANCHESTER CITY boss Pep Guardiola has opened the door for Lionel Messi to make a sensational move to the Etihad.

Reports in Spain this summer claimed Guardiola had tried to raid former club Barcelona for the Argentine superstar.

Guardiola has denied this ahead of his emotional return to the Nou Camp tonight for City's Champions League showdown with the Spanish giants.

But the Spanish boss has refused to rule out a move for Messi in the future and knows he is at one of the few clubs on the planet rich enough to afford him.

"If you are talking about this summer, I never called Messi. I never called Neymar, Luis Suarez, [Sergio] Busquets, Andres Iniesta, I didn't call anybody," he said. "I never called Leo Messi. In the case of Leo I really wish him to play here and finish his career here. Play here for a long time.

"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 happened to many of us.

"Maybe it could happen but if he decides to go and it happens, there would be seven or eight clubs that would want to sign him and it would be down to him. Messi will decide where to go."

Guardiola will face his ultimate test as he looks to stop Barca's Three Amigos of Messi, Luis Suarez and Neymar.

The celebrated trio have been hailed as the best attacking force in footballing history and will be on a mission to turn Guardiola's homecoming into a nightmare.

Even the great Guardiola admits he is struggling to come up with a plan to stop them and knows it could be mission impossible. He added: "I don't know what instructions I can give to the defenders to control the talent.

"Ninety minutes is a long time. They will have a moment - and when they do they are so precise. They don't need to create a lot of chances to score a goal. That's the big talent from Barcelona.

"We have to take the ball and make them run as much as possible. It's so difficult to control them. What I want are the points, but especially for us to be ourselves. I'm looking forward to it.

"I need to know my team as quickly as possible and this is a great test to know our level against one of the best teams, if not the best team in the world."