AC Milan legend details ambitious Messi transfer plan and 'scary' development
Former AC Milan technical director Paolo Maldini has recalled how he once tried to sign Lionel Messi - and got "scared" when he read rivals Inter were also interested.
Messi spent the entirety of his professional football career at Barcelona before leaving the club in 2021. He scored 672 goals in 778 appearances for the La Liga giants and won 35 major trophies along the way.
After weeks of speculation, the Argentina star would sign for Paris Saint-Germain on a free transfer. Messi would call time on a career at Barcelona that began with the club's famed La Masia academy and spanned 17 years.
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Before Messi signed for PSG, several clubs were interested in signing the forward. Now Maldini, who previously worked in the hierarchy at AC Milan, has revealed how the Italian club attempted to bring Messi to the San Siro.
Maldini spent his entire professional career with AC Milan as a player, making 901 appearances for the Serie A club before retiring in 2009. He would go on to become the club's technical director, a position he would hold until his departure earlier this year.
Speaking on the PoretCast podcast earlier this week, Maldini explains how much effort he put in to try and sign Messi for Milan.
"For 10 days we tried to bring Messi to Milan, but then we realized it was impossible," said Maldini.
"It is too late now, but a player like Messi is a spectacle for anyone to witness. When I read that he might even go to Inter, I got scared!"
Messi would go on to sign for PSG, where he would spend the next two seasons before leaving as a free agent to join Inter Miami in Major League Soccer. PSG signed Messi in a bid to form a new all-star forward line to guide the club to further glory.
Kylian Mbappe and Neymar were already the main stars for the Ligue 1 club but were yet to win the Champions League in the French capital. PSG moved to sign Messi in a bold attempt to lift the trophy for the first time in the club's history.
Lionel Messi won the eighth Ballon d'Or of his career earlier this month (Marcello Dias/Eurasia Sport Images/Getty Images)Messi has already won four Champions League titles in his career with Barcelona. The most recent, in 2015, came when he was a teammate of Neymar's at the Camp Nou.
Since leaving PSG in the summer, Messi has gone on to become one of the most popular stars in MLS. He scored 10 goals in seven appearances in the Leagues Cup to help Miami win their first trophy in the club's history.
Messi finished the season with 11 goals for Miami, but could not help his new team reach the MLS play-offs. The 36-year-old is expected to return for pre-season training in the New Year ahead of the 2024 MLS season.
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