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'You'd take Messi, but he comes with baggage!' | Pat Nevin on Messi bombshell

On a whirlwind evening of football news, Pat Nevin joined Tuesday's Football Show on Off The Ball...



On a whirlwind evening of football news, Pat Nevin joined Tuesday's Football Show on Off The Ball where he considered Lionel Messi's future.

Messi faxed his intention to leave Barcelona on Tuesday evening but Nevin questioned where the Argentinian can go next. It is a short list.

"Where will he go?" wondered Nevin. "There are lots of clubs that will have him, but where would suit him?

"100%, it's got to be a top club. So who are the top clubs? Bayern Munich won't take him. It's not that type of team, take that away.

"PSG? Yeah, possibly. Then you start looking towards England and you're not so sure.

"Who does take him, because you need to play him every week. You can't leave him out, so could [Manchester] City take him? Possibly. Could Liverpool take him with the pace they play at and the style they play?

"You start thinking there's probably only two or three teams that can take him, that can afford to pay him and we don't even know if they can.

"What I do suspect is he knows exactly who is going to pay him. He found out and he's been told who is going to take him and he's kind of happy with it.

"It will all come down to the legal argument over whether he goes of free or he goes for 700 million.

"The money you'll make on paraphernalia surrounding him, you'll probably make that money back."

Messi bombshell

Messi was not a calming dressing room force at the Nou Camp, but Nevin sees mostly positives to signing one of the best players on the planet.

"It brings many many positives," says Nevin. "The great play, the hype around your club, the sales you can make out of it, you are now a world-class club.

"If Man City are now a world-class club officially? Wow, yes they are if they have Lionel Messi for the last two, possibly great years of his career.

"It is fantastic, but everyone else has to shuffle along. You might need Kevin De Bruyne but 'you're now second by the way, boy.'

"The other side of it is Aguero is not getting any younger. Do you really want to surround him with an aging team?

"Given what has happened to them this season, with the power and the pace and the vibrancy of Liverpool. That's what City are trying to follow.

"When you get down to it though you would take him! He'll score a bunch of goals, of course you'll take him.

"But you'll take on a bit of baggage as well!"

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Barcelona Champions League Man City Messi PSG Pat Nevin