Lionel Messi could wipe out a potential transfer regret and win the Premier League title next season.
The Argentina icon scored a sensational free kick for Inter Miami as they beat Porto 2-1 at the Club World Cup, leading many to claim he could still perform in European football.
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Man City and Chelsea both attempted to sign Messi during his lengthy time in Europe.
Pep Guardiola‘s side seemed a natural fit and tried to snare him in August 2020 but missed out in a true Sliding Doors moment.
Before that, a move to the Blues fell through in 2014, with Messi wanting to build on his legacy at Barcelona.
He would eventually leave LaLiga – a competition he won on 10 occasions – in 2021 for Paris Saint-Germain.
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There, he failed to truly hit the heights he did in Spain, but nonetheless during this period he won the World Cup with Argentina, cementing himself as a football icon and one of the greatest players in history.
Now he’s in the MLS with the David Beckham-owned Inter Miami and has 50 goals in 61 games for the club.
And his continued success, and a vital goal against Porto in the Club World Cup, has got talkSPORT host Andy Goldstein convinced he could move to the Premier League and win Arsenal the title they crave after a 21-year drought.
Discussing his performances in the United States, former Chelsea and Tottenham defender Jason Cundy said: “He and Cristiano Ronaldo have pushed boundaries beyond anything we’ve ever seen before with the greatest players in the world. And we’ve seen them all in the past. I was lucky enough to see Diego Maradona in his pomp. I think he might have scraped past him.
“We’ve seen the Zidanes of this world. We’ve seen all of the greats go past. But these two, these two are just… I know they’re not doing it at the level they were, but then you see that.
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Goldstein queried: “Does he start for every team in the Premier League?”
And Cundy wasn’t sure, replying: “I don’t think he starts for every team in the Premier League.”
But then host Goldstein insisted Arsenal is where Messi could write yet more history.
“You know what, I think if he plays up top for Arsenal, he wins them the Premier League,” he proffered.
“I genuinely do. If you’ve got Messi scoring goals, I think he wins them [the title]. Where’s their weakness, Arsenal? It’s probably the lack of a No.9.
“Kai Havertz isn’t the answer.”
Cundy then challenged him, insisting Messi isn’t a centre-forward but Goldstein was adamant silverware would follow if the move was ratified.
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“I know he’s not [a No.9]. But he could still do that job. I think if Messi went to Arsenal, they’d win the Premier League.”
Cundy then admitted Messi may well have an itch to scratch when it comes to the Premier League.
He added: “I’m going off-piste a little bit. When he went to PSG, I was so done with that decision.
“It was so boring. City were in for him. I believe Chelsea were in for him. Other teams.
“Imagine if he’d come to the Premier League. Imagine what that would have been like. He went to PSG. I mean, talk about bore off.
“I reckon, looking back now, if you asked him if he could make another decision where he would have gone, I think he would have chosen somewhere different.
Asked if he should have joined the Premier League, Cundy added: “It was so right for that particular little portal for him to come to the most watched league in the world. He went to PSG. Bore off.”
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