'We offered Messi triple, but he never accepted'

Messi is on track to finish his career a one-club man, but has had tempting offers on the table from other sides in the past. One month before he signed his latest deal with Barcelona, Manchester City's chairman confirmed that the club wanted the Argentine. 

It was the 25th November 2017 when Messi signed his contract - running until 2021 and with a clause of 700 million euros - which earned responses from all over the footballing world, such as Juventus' executive director, Giuseppe Marotta. 

Until the long-awaited signature signalled the end of negotiations, rumours raged and the Argentine maestro was one of the names that Pep Guardiola's Manchester City were looking at. Khaldoon al Mubarak admitted that the 'Citizens' tried to bring in the forward. 

"We asked Guardiola to talk to him and we offered him triple the salary he had in Barcelona, but he never accepted," said Manchester City's chairman. After that renewal, Josep Maria Bartomeu spoke several months after another deal: "I think we will still renew it because Messi reinvents himself every year. He is already linked forever with Barça."