Lionel Messi’s days in European football appear to be over, but at one stage the Argentine icon was being heavily linked with a dramatic move to the Premier League

Andy Robertson made his clear verdict (

Andy Robertson never wanted Lionel Messi in the Premier League – only because Liverpool weren’t in the running to sign him.

Back in the summer of 2020, Messi decided that he wanted to leave his beloved Barcelona, only to make an dramatic U-turn stay for one more year. In the meantime, Premier League clubs were on red alert for his signature, with Manchester City quickly emerging as the favourites thanks to their links with Barca through Pep Guardiola and various other bigwigs.

Liverpool were champions at the time but Robertson was well aware that his side weren’t in the race. “From a completely selfish point of view I hope it doesn’t happen, hopefully, he stays at Barca,” the Liverpool left-back explained amid the transfer saga.

“He’s one of, if not the best player to ever play the game so for him to go to one of your nearest rivals is probably never a good sign. He’s a fantastic player, I’ve no doubt if he came to the Premier League he’d bring the exact same quality, the same passion and everything he brings at Barca.

“I think Liverpool have ruled out that we are going to sign him, so for me, I don’t want him anywhere near the Premier League and hopefully it stays that way, but we’ll wait and see what happens with that. Obviously you can see the uncertainty at Barca, I think everyone can see that, and hopefully they get it resolved.

“If he comes to the Prem we’ll deal with it, it’ll be great for the lads to play against him. I’ve played against him twice and it’s the hardest games I’ve ever played, so you need to stay on watch against him at all times, he can pop up out of nowhere. He’s a fantastic player, probably the best to ever play the game but hopefully he stays in Spain for me.”

Your turn! Should Lionel Messi have moved to the Premier League? Give us your verdict in the comment section.

Lionel Messi and Andy Robertson met in the 2019 Champions League semi-finals ( 
Image:
Getty Images)

Indeed it did get resolved, albeit temporarily. Paris Saint-Germain signed the Argentine icon on a free transfer in 2021 and much to Robertson’s relief, Messi never came up against Liverpool before departing for Inter Miami. City were once again linked before PSG’s swoop, but Guardiola and co were instead focussed on signing Jack Grealish from Aston Villa in a record-breaking £100million deal.

“We were convinced by Grealish and convinced Leo would stay at Barca,” the City manager explained. For Robertson’s sake, it was a good job Guardiola got it wrong