Lionel Messi tried to convince Manchester United cult hero to join Inter Miami as private phone call revealed

It takes a lot to decline a request from Lionel Messi - but one former Manchester United defender did just that.

The 36-year-old has eight Ballon d'Ors to his name and has cemented his legacy and reputation as one of, if not the, greatest footballer of all time.

Having come through the youth team ranks at Barcelona, Messi won 10 La Liga titles and four Champions League crowns before departing in 2021.

Messi then went to French giants Paris Saint-Germain, spending two seasons in the French capital and winning a pair of Ligue 1 titles in that time.

Last summer, Messi headed Stateside to join David Beckham co-owned Inter Miami.

Messi has already lifted silverware with the MLS outfit, with the 2023 Leagues Cup won as he continues to experience success in the latter stages of his playing career.

Several of Messi's past team-mates have reunited with him at Inter Miami, including former Barcelona stars Jordi Alba, Luis Suarez and Sergio Busquets.

It appears that the Argentina international has also tried to recruit some of his international team-mates to play with him at club level, including a former United defender in the form of Marcos Rojo.

The defender joined United in 2014 from Sporting Lisbon for £16m.

Rojo scored twice in 122 games for United, having been brought to the club by Louis Van Gaal, and won the FA Cup, League Cup and Europa League during his time at Old Trafford.

After a loan spell with Estudiantes, Rojo departed United permanently in 2021 to head to Boca Juniors, where he currently plays his football.

But Rojo revealed Messi tried to convince him to come to Inter Miami, but he opted to remain at Juan Roman Riquelme's side.

Speaking to Radio La Red, Rojo said: "Leo called me, it’s not like it was just anyone or an intermediary, no one. I spoke with Leo Messi, who told me about the possibility of going to Inter. Imagine what that means for any footballer.

"The truth is I was not convinced to leave Boca, I had recently renewed. The only thing I did was communicate with Roman to tell him about the situation and to tell him that if he needed me here I was going to stay.

"I wasn’t convinced to leave, I didn’t want to leave. If he told me that he needed me here for this year, I was 100% convinced to continue in Boca and I want to continue doing it."