Manchester City are still expected to sign Lionel Messi, despite missing out last summer, but there's 'two very important factors' still standing in the way of the transfer.
Messi looked set to leave Barcelona in the summer after he revealed he wanted to end his time with the Catalan giants, following their embarrassing 8-2 loss to Bayern Munich in the Champions League.
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City were always the favourites to sign him, for a number of reasons, but he admitted defeat in his attempts to move when it was ruled that he couldn't leave for free, as he originally thought.
With the six time Ballon d'Or winner's contract up at the end of the season, his time as a Barcelona player is still expected to come to an end.
According to El Chiringuito, via Sport Witness, City remain favourites to sign the player but there's still two 'renewals' that need to happen at the Etihad Stadium.
The report claims that Messi wants manager Pep Guardiola to renew his deal, with the former Barca boss in his final year at the club, and the forward wants fellow Argentina teammate Sergio Aguero to also sign a new deal.
Guardiola, who of course managed Messi at the Nou Camp, winning the Champions League twice in their time together, is already been in his fifth year in the Premier League.
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It's the longest he's been manager at one club, having been in charge at Barca for four years and at Bayern Munich for three years, and there has been some questions over whether he'll stay or not.
In the past the former Roma midfielder has questioned how long a group of players will listen to one manager and that's one reason he's left his previous clubs.
Last season the former English champions were well behind Liverpool, as Jurgen Klopp's side won the title for the first time in 30 years, and they've had some issues still this season.
Aguero's fitness has been one of those problems and there's also questions about the future of the club's all time top scorer.
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His injuries, along with Gabriel Jesus' injuries and form, have led to strong links with big name strikers, with Lautaro Martinez and Erling Haaland amongst the names previously linked.
Will Messi move to City next summer? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.
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