Paper Round: Manchester City on Lionel Messi alert

Manchester City are the latest club to be linked with Barcelona superstar Lionel Messi, Liverpool are set to lose out on Xherdan Shaqiri and the rest of the transfer gossip from today’s papers.
City on Messi alert: Manchester City are the latest club to be linked with an audacious move for Barcelona superstar Lionel Messi. Rumours linking Messi with Chelsea began circulating on Monday night after the Argentina forward started following the West London club having failed to turn up for training. And now the Manchester Evening News reports that “City could step up their ambitious attempt to sign Lionel Messi after Barcelona sacked technical director Andoni Zubizarreta.” 


Paper Round’s view: Although this seems completely crazy, it perhaps isn’t so far-fetched as the rumours linking Cristiano Ronaldo with a return to Manchester United. Barca recently sacked technical director Antonio Zubizarreta, Carlos Puyol resigned as a consequence and Luis Enrique did bench Messi against Real Sociedad. It hints at turmoil within the club. But Messi follows both Chelsea and Man City on Instagram and Barca really can’t afford to lose their star player with their transfer suspension. 

 Bony targets Champions League: Although a move for Lionel Messi is somewhat of a long shot to say the least, The Daily Telegraph reports that Manchester City could well be the next destination for Swansea’s in-demand striker Wilfried Bony. The paper’s Matt Law reports that City “have made inquiries about how much it would cost to sign Bony this month as they assess their striker options. Real Madrid have also expressed a tentative interest in Bony and the Ivory Coast international is aware that he is in demand.” 

Paper Round’s view: Although City’s current injury troubles up front are well documented, this one seems unlikely. Bony recently signed a contract extension before Christmas which means that City would have to fork out in excess of £30 million. Bony is soon to leave for African Nations Cup duty but the fact that Swansea signed Portuguese striker Nelson Oliveira on loan from Benfica means they may accept a silly bid for the striker.

Liverpool to lose out on Shaqiri: Having been rocked by the recent news that captain and talisman Steven Gerrard will leave the club for a likely move to the MLS at the end of the season, Liverpool are also set to miss out on Bayern Munich winger Xherdan Shaqiri. That’s the latest news coming out of Talksport, who report that Inter Milan have won the battle for his signature. “Shaqiri will join Inter on loan during the January transfer window with a view to making the move permanent at the end of the season for a fee in the region of £12m,” says Talksport via Sportitalia.

 Paper Round’s view: Although Shaqiri has failed to command a regular spot at Bayern, it’s hardly a huge surprise given the strength in depth of the Bundesliga giants. But Inter are likely to give Shaqiri the chance of a regular starting spot to fight for domestic and European titles, which is something that a Liverpool side on the wane can’t guarantee. 

Saints face competition from United for Indi: Southampton boss Ronald Koeman is to step up his pursuit of Porto defender Bruno Martins Indi, according to the Daily Mail. Koeman was interested in signing Indi in the summer but he may face stiff competition from Manchester United as the paper revealed that “the 22-year-old admitted he continues to think about working with Van Gaal - the former Holland boss.” Indi is quoted as saying, 'Spiritually I still have contact with Van Gaal,' he said. 'I think about him and I think he also thinks about me.'

 Paper Round’s view: It sounds as if a move to Manchester United would certainly be the defender’s preferred choice, given what he has said. That, allied to United’s need for a versatile defender given their current predicament makes Old Trafford the more likely destination.