Ronald Koeman hopes he can convince Lionel Messi to stay at Barça | OneFootball

Reports on Wednesday suggest Lionel Messi has made up his mind to leave Barcelona, with Manchester City thought to be his most likely next destination.

But it seems Barça boss Ronald Koeman hasn’t given up hope of Messi staying just yet.

Catalan outlet RAC1 report that Koeman wants to have a second conversation with Messi in which he will try to convince the club’s talisman to stay put and be the leader of his project.

Whether Messi will even entertain the idea of sticking around at this point remains to be seen, however.

RAC1 also report that Barça president Josep Maria Bartomeu has tried to arrange a meeting with the Argentine superstar to discuss his future.

But aside from the bombshell burofax Messi sent to the president announcing his intention to leave on Tuesday, Bartomeu has had no contact with the club captain, who prefers to leave the matter in the hands of his lawyers.

Various reports suggest Messi is still hoping to be able to trigger a clause in his contract which would enable him to leave Camp Nou on a free transfer.

On Wednesday it was reported that Messi’s entourage has contacted Fifa to make an official transfer request and according to RAC1, Fifa would allow Messi to play for another club next season with a legal battle between the player and Barcelona likely to take place in the background.

A reunion with former coach Pep Guardiola in Manchester seems the most probable outcome as things stand, with reports suggesting the Premier League club have already begun negotiations with Messi’s father.