Tuesday, November 25, 2014

If Lionel Messi left Barcelona, where would he go?



A few weeks ago, the mere notion of Lionel Messi leaving Barcelona would’ve been unthinkable. His bond with with all the club he’d joined like a 13-year-old am strong, but somewhere in past times 1 . 5 years, something has shifted.

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Murmurings about Messi leaving Barça have come and gone before. However with reports he feels the club hasn’t been supporting him and also the chance of him facing a shot and even jail time over his Spanish tax problems, this latest spate of rumors feels different.

Suddenly, the thing that was previously inconceivable seems at least not entirely impossible. Would Barca be willing to let him go?

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Losing a few-time Ballon d’Or winner has to be massive blow. But for an extent, the club has covered its bases with Neymar and Luis Suarez. Were Messi to depart, Barcelona might struggle temporarily. Ultimately, though, the club would go forward – just like it did following the departures of Romario, Ronaldinho and Samuel Eto’o.

For Messi, whose form has undeniably dipped over the last year and a half, leaving Barcelona to strike out on a new challenge most likely are not an awful idea. Having already won three Champions League titles, six La Liga crowns and basically every other trophy open to him at Barça, you could forgive him for feeling a little jaded.

But where would he go?

Messi playing inside Premier League can be a mouthwatering prospect. Would he have the ability to replicate his devastating La Liga form from the high concentration of the Premiership? Or would he indeed “struggle over a cold night for the Britannia Stadium,” as Premier League pundit Andy Gray once claimed.

Assuming Real Madrid no longer has enough the image, you can find a handful of clubs while using the money and prestige to sign him.

If he were to visit to England, Manchester City are the obvious destination. The noisy neighbors have enough cash, have won two from the last three Premier League titles and also have a Barcelona connection in Txiki Begiristain, the former Barça football director that's now City's director of football. And Messi’s friend and Argentina teammate Sergio Aguero plays there.

Paris Saint-Germain is an additional possibility. French champions crave European success and possess long felt that Messi could be the player who are able to deliver it for many years. Ligue 1 may not offer the same a higher level competition as La Liga, but PSG have enough money Messi’s wages. In addition to being he ages, playing in France might enable him grant his life expectancy, in the same way Zlatan Ibrahimovic has.

Bayern Munich is a second club that will appear to have everything needed to attract a person like Messi. The German powerhouse has money, prestige, a fantastic winning tradition and Pep Guardiola, the coach who oversaw his emergence because the top in the earth. The Bundesliga, having its intensity, would offer Messi the new challenges he needs, as well as the Bayern system, which nurtures stars but prizes the team collective, would suit him.

Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger once attempted to bring the teenage Messi towards Emirates. While Messi will be a great fit for Arsenal, really the only London club effective at meeting his $300 million-plus release clause is Chelsea. Though it’s challenging to imagine him playing under Jose Mourinho, were the Portuguese of burning his final bridge with Roman Abramovich, it’s not inconceivable that Messi could join the West Londoners.

Financial Fair Play restrictions could rule in City or PSG building a proceed to sign Messi. But here are a few other possibilities. Manchester United and in some cases Inter Milan could potentially have the ability to funding a move for him.

Although with Barcelona facing a transfer ban, it’s likely Messi will stay in the Camp Nou. His Barcelona and Argentina teammate Javier Mascherano insists he’s happy there. Which might be so, nonetheless it’s pretty obvious he’s quite a bit less happy because he was previously.

It'd, certainly, be fantastic if Messi and Barcelona were to solve their issues, so he'll exhaust his career there, something he maintains he wants. Conversely, a brand new team, a new league and new challenges might be just the thing Lionel Messi should resume his otherworldly best.

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