Manchester City are keen on luring Barcelona star forward, Lionel Messi to the Etihad Stadium with a deal said to be valued at €27 million a year, Spanish paper Sport reported.
The 28-year-old is currently on a €20 million-a-year deal at Camp Nou and the club is not expected to enter into new contract negotiations until next year.
Barcelona however expect the Argentine to turn down the €7 million increase offered by the Manchester City deal and commit to a longer stay at the Catalan side.
The report further states that the City will not be tabling a concrete offer until Messi indicates that he would be ready to accept the offer, Goal.com reported.
Lionel Messi had previously rejected an expression of interest in his services from Paris Saint Germain and Chelsea.
Manchester City are also linked with Messi’s former coach at Barca, Pep Guardiola, who will leave his current job at Bayern Munich at the end of the season.