Pochettino: Messi had nearly joined Espanyol back in 2005
Tomorrow, Barcelona would play against Tottenham Hotspur in their second Champions League match of the season. And before the match, Tottenham's manager Mauricio Pochettino has revealed a surprising fact about the Barcelona talisman. As per the Tottenham gaffer, Messi had almost joined Espanyol in 2005, but Barca held him back. Here are the details.
Pochettino reveals when he started hearing about young Leo
The Tottenham manager was playing at Espanyol at the tail end of his career, and he said that is where he began to hear about this young Argentine talent in the Barcelona academy. Messi was 13 when he joined Barcelona's youth academy. He made a mark immediately, and even Ronaldinho admitted that he had gone to see Messi play there.
Involvement in the Joan Gamper Trophy made Barca keep Messi
Barcelona played against Juventus in the 2005 Joan Gamper Trophy, where Messi was involved in the action. Fabio Capello, the then-manager of Juventus, was hugely impressed by the young Blaugrana talent and showered praises on him after the match. According to Pochettino, this is when Barcelona decided not to sell Messi and keep him. The rest, as they say, is history!
Pochettino jokes that he could have played with Messi
"So if you look back in history, maybe if he didn't play in the Joan Gamper that summer, maybe today he could have been the biggest star in Espanyol and Espanyol could be Barcelona", said the Tottenham manager. Pochettino also joked that if Messi went to Espanyol, the two could have been team-mates, and he would go on to manage Messi at the club.
