How Barcelona Rejected N135bn Offer From Top Italian Club For Lionel Messi 15 Years Ago
- Barely one year after Barcelona promoted Lionel Messi to their first team, Inter Milan tried signing the winger
- Reports reveal the Italian League giants presented a bid to the tunes of N135b (£225m) for the Argentine
- The 34-year-old has now moved to PSG on a free transfer after his contract at Barcelona expired in June
Lionel Messi joining Paris Saint Germain for free this summer remains a dream to so many despite how much the Argentine is valued in world football.
The six-time Ballon d'Or winner signed a two-year deal with the Parisians with an option for an additional year after ending his 21-year relationship with Barcelona.
Although it is not like other clubs never made attempts to lure the winger away from Camp Nou with mega fees, the club refused to let him go while the player also seemed comfortable there.
Source: Getty Images
Recent events have now revealed that Messi could have joined Inter Milan in 2006 for a fee four times the previous record back then as reported by Sport Bible quoting Radio Onda Cero in April.
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Barca president Joan Laporta while speaking at an event earlier this year disclosed that he rejected a £225 million move from the Serie A team in his previous stint as the club's chief.
What Barcelona president Joan Laporta said about Messi
"Nobody who loves Barcelona can have doubts about Messi. We rejected a £225m offer coming from Inter in 2006. [Massimo] Moratti wanted to bring him to his club."
The bid would have quadrupled Zinedine Zidane's world-record move from Juventus to Real Madrid - a deal that cost Los Blancos about £46.6 million during the first Galactico era.
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Why Lionel Messi joined PSG ahead of other suitors
Legit.ng earlier reported that Lionel Messi will begin a new life at Paris Saint Germain this season after completing a two-year move to the club earlier this month.
The 34-year-old was presented to the media on Wednesday, August 10 after undergoing medical at the outfit's facility.
Messi has however revealed that he joined the French League giants because they offer him the opportunity to lift his fifth Champions League title.
Source: Legit.ng
