PEP GUARDIOLA left Steve Bruce in tears of laughter during a conversation about bringing Lionel Messi to Manchester City.
A reunion between the pair was on the cards in 2020 when Messi’s contract with Barcelona started to wind down.
Messi was said to have been convinced by his old manager to move to the Etihad but performed a U-turn due to his belief Barca would offer him a new deal.
That deal didn’t end up coming to fruition and he joined Paris Saint-Germain on a free transfer in August 2021 instead.
The prospect of Messi moving to the Prem quickly became the talk of players and managers alike.
And at a Premier League meeting with all the managers present, former Burnley boss Sean Dyche quizzed Guardiola about his pursuit of the footie icon while getting a cup of tea with Bruce.
During an appearance on talkSPORT, he recalled: “I said, ‘What was that thing about Lionel Messi?’
“He (Guardiola) goes, ‘Sean, Steve, I tell you this. Lionel, he said no way can he come to Manchester City.
“Because I tell Lionel it rains. ‘It rains and rains. And when it stops raining, it rains again.’
“Then he goes, ‘Lionel, on a Monday night, you have to go to Burnley, Sean’s team.
“And they go bang, bang, bang, bang, bang.’ Brucey was crying!”
Dyche, 53, added: “I went, ‘That’s exactly what we’re going to do, Pep You warned him correctly.’
“Me and Brucey were crying, honestly. It was genius. Pep, brilliant.”
The prospect of eight-time Ballon d’Or winner Messi rocking up at Turf Moor tickled Dyche, who said: “Imagine that.
“His face turning up at Turf Moor going, ‘What on earth? “
“Absolutely smashing it down with rain, wind blowing across and knocking you over.”
Messi spent two seasons with PSG before upping sticks to the MLS to join David Beckham co-owned Inter Miami.
Read the full article here