PEP, MESSI MEET AGAIN
SUPERSTAR HAS PLAYED JUST 3 GAMES FOR HIS NEW CLUB AND IS YET TO SCORE
There was a time when a reunion between Lionel Messi and Pep Guardiola looked distinctly possible, but tomorrow they will be on opposite sides again when Paris SaintGermain play Manchester City in the Champions League.
Had it not been for Jack Grealish, perhaps things would have turned out differently.
City announced the £100 million ($139m) signing of Grealish from Aston Villa on August 5, the same day Barcelona revealed Messi would not be staying at the Camp Nou.
A year ago, when Messi tried to force his departure from Catalonia, City appeared the most likely destination.
In the end Barcelona prevented the six-time Ballon d’Or winner from leaving then and 12 months later Messi was prepared to stay put until it became clear the financial mess at the Camp Nou meant he could not.
Missed chance
If City had anticipated Messi becoming available, they might have moved for him. But instead they focused their sights on Grealish and were trying to sign Harry Kane, a move that ultimately didn’t happen. “Right now it is not in our thoughts,” Guardiola said when asked if City might move for Messi.
Messi has played just three games for his new club and is yet to score. He has sat out PSG’s last two matches with a knee problem but the feeling is that Mauricio Pochettino has been saving him for City.
Messi will fancy opening his account in Paris on such an occasion, and Guardiola has already been on the receiving end of the Argentine’s genius in Europe.
After Guardiola left Barcelona in 2012 at the end of four glorious years in which he oversaw Messi’s transition from superstar in the making to the best in the world, he faced his old club for the first time in the Champions League semi-finals in 2015.
Barcelona beat Guardiola’s Bayern 5-3 on aggregate on the way to winning the trophy. Messi produced a sublime performance to score two late goals in a 3-0 first-leg win at the Camp Nou that effectively killed the tie.
This time the expectation is both City and PSG will progress from their group and both men are desperate to win the Champions League again - the last of Messi’s four titles came in 2015, while Guardiola has not lifted the trophy since Messi inspired Barcelona to a 3-1 win over Manchester United in the 2011 final.