Manchester City’s plans to buy another centre-back this summer will not be affected by their interest in Lionel Messi.
City, who have already bought Bournemouth’s Nathan Ake, are keen on Napoli defender Kalidou Koulibaly as Pep Guardiola looks to give his side more solidity.
But while the sudden availability of Messi, who wants to leave Barcelona, could offer the chance of an unexpected reunion with Guardiola at the Etihad Stadium, the Argentine will not come in place of players in other positions.
City’s other targets have been in place for a while and a club who often make signings early in a transfer window did so again when recruiting Ake and Valencia winger Ferran Torres, a replacement for the sold Leroy Sane.
City’s need for another centre-back was underlined when Eric Garcia, whose contract expires in 2021, said he would not sign a new deal and the 19-year-old could be sold this year.
John Stones and Nicolas Otamendi both fell out of favour last season and Guardiola admitted in July that the Englishman could leave the Etihad Stadium this summer.
But while the cost of financing a deal for Messi could be considerable, it will not alter City's other intentions and they will not sacrifice any key players as part of any transfer.
Garcia and Angelino, who has attracted interest from Barcelona, could go to the Camp Nou in part-exchange but City have ruled out letting Bernardo Silva, Gabriel Jesus or Riyad Mahrez move in any kind of swap.
Messi missed Barcelona’s return to training on Monday after requesting a transfer and could have a meeting with the club on Wednesday.
He has a buyout clause of €700 million (Dh3.07 billion), though it is unlikely anyone would pay that for a 33-year-old.
