Lionel Messi has often been linked with a move to Manchester City, but the Barcelona legend seems to have more affection for Manchester United. Lionel Messi prefers the history of Manchester United to the millions of dollars at Manchester City, the Mirror (UK) commented.
Lionel Messi, 37, is currently showing his talent at Inter Miami, after being convinced by club owner and Manchester United legend David Beckham to move to Florida (USA).
There have been repeated rumours that Messi is tempted by the idea of moving to the Premier League, due to its financial might and huge appeal. The likes of Man City and Chelsea have been linked with Lionel Messi. But if United had made a desperate bid to bring Messi to Old Trafford, they might have succeeded, as the 2022 World Cup winner is said to be a big fan of the club.
According to the Athletic (UK), Lionel Messi is said to be “more attracted” by “English clubs with great histories like Manchester United”. This is not the only time Messi has been briefly linked with the red half of Manchester.
When Messi was 20, Sir Alex Ferguson was said to have been interested in signing him from Barcelona. Shortly after his interest was made public, Messi told FourFourTwo magazine: “I’m happy at Barcelona. Why wouldn’t I be? I’ve fulfilled my dream. It’s the best club in the world with the best players. My family are very happy here, they love it here.”
Messi has beaten Sir Alex Ferguson’s United in not one but two Champions League finals. The diminutive and agile forward scored a stunning header in the 2009 final in Rome, before firing low past Edwin van der Sar at Wembley two years later.
Lionel Messi established himself as Barcelona’s greatest ever player, contributing 672 goals and 303 assists in 778 appearances. Messi’s time at the Nou Camp ended when he left Barcelona on a free transfer to join Paris Saint-Germain in the summer of 2021.
After two years, Messi joined Beckham’s Inter Miami, where he contributed an incredible 34 goals and 18 assists in 39 appearances. Messi was named MLS Player of the Season for 2023-24 at the end of his first season in the United States.
While Sir Alex Ferguson could not bring Messi to MU, the legendary Scottish coach helped his former student David Beckham convince Messi to reject an invitation from Saudi Arabia to join MLS.
Speaking on the Jimmy Fallon show, David Beckham said: “One of the things I learned from Sir Alex Ferguson… he came back to me and said: ‘Whoever you bring in, they have to be right for the club’.
It’s not about the biggest name or personality, it’s about who fits the players best. That’s what we’re going to do. But, like I said, as owners, if you want to bring these players in, we have a great opportunity.”
Although Messi is attracted to MU, he is playing with his former Barcelona teammates Luis Suarez, Jordi Alba and Sergio Busquets at Inter Miami so there is no possibility of him joining the Old Trafford team.
