Report: Man City Looks to Flex Financial Muscle for Colossal Messi Contract Offer

Manchester City hoping to convince the five-time FIFA Ballon d'Or winner Lionel Messi of a move to the Etihad once his contract in Catalonia expires, according to a report from The Sun.

Manchester City are hoping to convince the five-time FIFA Ballon d'Or winner Lionel Messi of a move to the Etihad once his contract in Catalonia expires, according to a report from The Sun.

It is understood that the Argentina captain, whose contract with Barcelona expires in 2018, will be offered a whopping £40m signing-on-fee as well as hefty wage packet of over £500k-per-week.

Messi first moved to Barcelona almost 20 years ago, leaving Argentine side Newell's Old Boys for the Blaugrana in 2000. After 594 appearances for the Catalan giants, in which Messi has scored 521 goals, the 30-year-old is considering a move away from the Camp Nou once his current contract runs out.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by 90min (@90min_football)

"Money isn’t a problem here," Manchester City star Sergio Agüero confirmed when asked about if he'd like to play alongside his national team captain at club level.

"I would love to have Leo on my team but it also seems quite complicated. Messi is like Ronaldo - they are players who are symbols of their clubs and it’s difficult for them to leave."

NELSON ALMEIDA/GettyImages

Messi has been in incredible form - even by his standards - this season. With 11 goals already in La Liga, which included a hat-trick against Espanyol and hitting four past SD Eibar, the Argentine is on course to notch over 60 goals in all competitions.