Sport Man City 'exploring if they can sign Messi without breaking FFP rules'

Manchester City are reportedly looking into whether it will be possible to sign Barcelona captain Lionel Messi this summer.

The Barca legend has reportedly expressed doubts about his future at the Camp Nou, particularly after the humiliating 8-2 defeat against Bayern Munich in the Champions League.

And City, managed by Messi's former boss Pep Guardiola, are exploring whether a deal would be possible with regards to Financial Fair Play (FFP) rules, according to ESPN, if Barca are willing to negotiate a fee lower than Messi's €700m (£631m) release clause.

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MANCHESTER City and Paris Saint-Germain have been targeted by a new spending clampdown backed by But Chelsea and West Ham would struggle to do any January business, without making sales, if they Uefa found that PSG didn't break the FFP rule when they secured both Neymar and

City have been banned from playing in the Champions League for the next two seasons having been found to have breached Financial Fair Play rules . He wrote in his column in The Sun that if they don’t have European football to offer prospective signings, they won’t be able to recruit top talent.

The report details that some Barcelona board members are open to selling their star 33-year-old, if he pushes for a move away this summer.

What is Lionel Messi's contract clause and how much would he cost if Barcelona sold him?

If a club really wanted to sign the six-time Ballon d'Or winner, they could simply trigger his release clause - but what is it?The speculation has been fuelled by the fact that Barca have endured a truly dismal season, one which saw the club miss out on La Liga glory before being dumped ignominiously out of the Champions League.

Manchester City have been banned from the Champions League for two seasons, from 2020-21, and fined €30m by Uefa.

United and Real are the only teams which are capable of buying Messi without breaking FFP rules according to financial experts. That is what is going round on twitter anyway.

Barca appointed former Southampton, Everton and Holland coach Ronald Koeman as the club's new manager last week, and Koeman discussed Messi's future with the man himself.

Messi has only ever played for Barcelona, but after a disappointing conclusion to the 2019-20 season - after also missing out domestically as they surrendered their LaLiga title to fierce rivals Real Madrid - the Argentine is reportedly considering his future.

His contract at Barca runs out next summer, yet Barca's official stance is that they would not sell below his staggeringly high release clause figure.

© Provided by Daily Mail Dutch coach Ronald Koeman was appointed the new manager of Barcelona last week

© Provided by Daily Mail Messi held talks with Koeman about his future - his current contract runs until next summer

From City's standpoint, a deal would be particularly tricky in light of the coronavirus crisis and their recent financial problems with UEFA and FFP.

The Court of Arbitration for Sport overturned City's two-year European ban last month, an original punishment set by UEFA for violating FFP regulations.

Messi 'has already contacted Pep over move to Manchester City'

It was revealed on Tuesday that Barca legend Lionel Messi, who has spent his entire career at the Nou Camp, has told the LaLiga club he wants to move on to pastures new this summer.It was revealed on Tuesday that Barca legend Messi, who has spent his entire career at the Nou Camp, has told the club he wants to move on to pastures new having become tired of the current regime.

Uefa’s FFP rules , intended to encourage clubs not to overspend on players’ wages by making heavy losses bankrolled by an owner, allow sponsorships by companies connected to owners, but only if they are for “fair value”. Manchester City may face Champions League ban after Uefa FFP investigation.

I suppose without him Barca just crumble. If you play your cards right messi . And by cards i mean my beer league and by play I mean annihilate east side. They can 't find a replacement as good as Messi with all the money in the world. There is none.

A deal for Messi, with fee and wages included, could break the world record for a transfer, when Neymar moved to PSG from Barca in 2017 for £200million.

Yet Messi enjoyed arguably the greatest years of his career at Barcelona under Guardiola from 2008-2012, winning the Champions League twice and LaLiga three times.

© Provided by Daily Mail Man City chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak says more players will be signed this summer

City chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak has insisted more signings are set to occur at the Etihad during this window.

'We'll be sensible and pragmatic about it but we will do what it takes, I think you've seen when it comes to the two acquisitions we have made, [Nathan] Ake and Ferran Torres, we moved quickly,' he said.

'There are additional players we will be bringing in and we will stick to the plan, obviously within the realities of the market that we live in today.'