Lionel Messi wants Barcelona to sign top Manchester United target, Real Madrid to offer €147 million trio to Manchester United for Paul Pogba and more: Transfer Roundup, 2 June 2019

By Shambhu Ajith

Modified Jul 22, 2022 23:38 GMT

Messi wants Barcelona to close the signing of one of Europe's most sought-after players

Lionel Messi urges Barcelona to seal the signing of Matthijs De Ligt

Barcelona endured a rather anti-climactic end to their season crashing out of the UEFA Champions League and subsequently losing the Copa Del Rey final. Ernesto Valverde's future is a hot topic of discussion as are Barcelona's plans for the summer.

Barcelona looked set to have a decent outing in the ongoing transfer window with Matthijs De Ligt being one of the biggest names that was widely tipped to join La Blaugrana. However, the emergence of Manchester City and Manchester United in the scene and the lucrativeness of the contracts on offer in England has tipped the scales in the Manchester teams' favour.

Messi still wants Barcelona to secure the services of the 19-year-old Ajax captain. In fact, the report claims that Messi saw the signing as vital given Pique's age and the cloud of doubt that hangs above Samuel Umtiti.

Edited by Sripad