Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has spoken his mind out on the speculation surrounding Lionel Messi’s Barcelona future.
In a press conference ahead of the Citizens’ meeting with Newcastle on Wednesday evening, Guardiola was asked for his reaction to rumours that he may try to bring Messi to Manchester.
But the manager has refused to be drawn on Man City’s transfer plans for the time being.
“As I’ve said before, we’ll talk about the transfer market at the end of the season and I won’t say anything now,” Guardiola explained in his native Catalan.
“But my preference is for Messi to stay at Barcelona.”
Messi has sent the rumour mill into overdrive once again after putting on hold negotiations to extend his current Barcelona contract, which expires at the end of the 2020/21 campaign.
The 33-year-old has already been linked with moves to various Italian clubs, including a mouth-watering crossover with Cristiano Ronaldo at Juventus.
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But most Barcelona followers expect Messi to remain one of theirs and believe he is simply taking advantage of his strong hand with the club directors.
This article was most recently revised and updated 4 years ago
