Skip navigation
Favorites
Sign up to follow your favorites on all your devices.
Sign up
All Scores
Odds by

Messi decision unlikely until summer; open to Barcelona, Man City, MLS

ichFmbT7hqdq
The PST crew takes a look at transfer needs in the Premier League and discusses who needs to handle business at the start of the window.

Lionel Messi has revealed that he is in no rush to decide his future as he approaches the final six months of his contract at Barcelona, despite the fact he could sign for any club in the world (outside of Spain) in just four days.

[ MORE: Transfer news: Salah to leave Liverpool; Bissouma to Manchester United ]

In an extraordinary interview first aired in Spain on Sunday, Messi opened up about the past, present and future of his ongoing transfer/contract saga at Barcelona — from his initial desire to leave the club long before formally submitting a transfer request this past summer, to letting Luis Suarez leave for free to La Liga title rivals Atletico Madrid, to Ronald Koeman’s progress as Barcelona boss, to the nature of his relationship with Pep Guardiola, to his long-held (but never publicized) desire to one day play in MLS.

Below is a selection of the most interesting and/or shocking revelations, straight from the Argentine wizard, Lionel Messi, himself…

While Messi has previously casually flirted with the idea of one day coming to MLS — in a “sure, it could happen, why not?” kind of way — his admission that “it has always been one of [his] dreams” is certainly noteworthy, even if it’s nothing more than a negotiating tactic ahead of his impending free agency.

[ MORE: Report: Juve seeking transfer, loan for USMNT prospect Reynolds ]

As for the links to Manchester City and Guardiola, it’s not at all surprising that he still sees his former manager as “the best” in the world. The transfer rumors linking Messi to Manchester City will, of course, persist as they are one of only a handful of clubs in the world that could afford to sign him.

After all of the above comments about possible destinations and the drama which has played out over the course of many years — in Messi’s version of events, at least — it still sounds like he prefers to remain at Barcelona — a better functioning version of the club, of course — beyond this summer. His love for Barcelona is clear as day, and perhaps he feels that threatening to walk away is the only way to affect real change for an institution which is resistant to doing so.

Follow @AndyEdMLS