This article is part of Football FanCast’s Pundit View series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent quotes from journalists, pundits, players and managers…
Arsene Wenger was interested in signing Lionel Messi when he was manager of Arsenal, he told beIN Sports, via Marca.
What did he say?
Since leaving Arsenal last year, Arsene Wenger has had plenty of time on his hands to share his thoughts on the game as well as anecdotes from his reign at the north London outfit.
In a recent interview with beIN Sports, via Marca, he has been talking about the signing of Cesc Fabregas from Barcelona, and has also confirmed he was in talks to sign Lionel Messi as well.
He said: “You have to live with regrets in life, you know.
“There’s only unachieved business in life and this is a big part of it.
“We were in discussions with [Messi] when we bought Fabregas because Messi played [with him].
“We were interested in him, but he was untouchable at the time.”
“They have the bigger mentality” – Spurs fans come to blows after the North London Derby in the video below…
Another one to add to the Wenger collection
The 69-year-old signed some fantastic players for Arsenal, but they are almost overshadowed by the ones that got away due to his constant comments about those he attempted to purchase.
If you look through the list, it really is a who’s who of football over the last 20 years. By his own admission, Wenger attempted to bring in N’Golo Kante when he was still playing for Caen, as well as Paul Pogba before he left Manchester United to join Juventus.
Gareth Bale, Yaya Toure and Zlatan Ibrahmovic were also all on Wenger’s radar, he has confirmed down the years, with the switches not going through often due to comical reasons. He even eyed Cristiano Ronaldo, who was shown around the club’s base by the Frenchman before moving to Old Trafford.
What a team Arsenal could have had! And clearly, what an eye for talent Wenger possesses, at least coming from the man himself. It is an awful lot easier to say he was interested when they had already proven themselves at the highest level, though.
How many more names should we expect to have been “close” to a move to the Emirates outfit down the years? If history tells us anything, Messi won’t be the last to be name-dropped.
