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Premier League: Arsene Wenger tried to sign 15-year-old Lionel Messi for Arsenal

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Arsene Wenger has confirmed the club were very close to signing Lionel Messi

Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger tried to sign Lionel Messi when the Barcelona superstar was just 15.

Wenger wanted to bring the Argentina striker and Spain central defender Gerard Pique to the club from the Barca Academy at the same time as Cesc Fabregas.

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In the end, only Fabregas moved, and a recent biography suggests the potential deal for Messi broke down because Arsenal were unable to purchase accommodation for his family, who were keen to join him in London, although the South American would still have needed to secure a work permit.

Despite all of their efforts, Arsenal boss Wenger - who also scouted the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Didier Drogba when they were raw talents - believes the player just felt settled in Spain and was not prepared to take a chance on moving to England.

"I think in the end, he was not so keen to move. It was at a period where Fabregas came, and Fabregas and Messi played together in the same team at Barcelona Academy,” Wenger said.

“We wanted to take Fabregas, Messi and Pique. It worked only for Fabregas.

"It was not completely down to a flat in the end. It was down to the fact that, in the end, Messi was comfortable at Barcelona."

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