Ex-Arsenal scout Francis Cagigao explains on why Messi did not sign for the Gunners despite coming very close.
Francis Caggio reveals that Arsenal were very close to signing a 15-year old Messi from the La Masia academy.
The Argentine who has an illustrious career with Barcelona scoring 635 goals in more than 700 appearances was on the brink of signing for Gunners.
Cagigao went on to explain why a move for the Argentine failed to materialise.
“Messi, [Gerard] Piqué, [Juan] Mata were very, very close and there were others,” Cagigao says.
“With Messi, work permit issues ensured we couldn’t get as close as we would have liked.
“And that’s all I can say on that. A lot get away – two, three, four a year – but I prefer to look at the ones we did get.”
Cagigao did manage to bring other great young talents such as Cesc Fabregas and Hecton Bellerin a few years later.
“A combination of very good technique, vision, awareness, intelligence. I was watching a boy with a GPS in his brain, maturity beyond his years. His decision-making was near-perfect already,” Cagigao said of a teenage Fabregas.
“Cesc showed how strong our scouting department had become, how well we could identify and then recruit,” Cagigao added.
Manchester City are still hoping to land Lionel Messi at the Camp Nou by the next summer transfer window.
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