Paris Saint-Germain have made Lionel Messi a top transfer target "every year", claims Javier Pastore, with the former star at Parc des Princes once charged with the task of trying to lure his fellow countryman to France.
Pastore, one of the first marquee additions of the QSI era in Paris, was successful in talking Angel di Maria into making a move to Ligue 1, when the forward was looking for a way out of Manchester United in 2015.
Messi though proved to be out of reach, despite every effort being made to prise the six-time Ballon d'Or winner away from Barcelona.
What has been said?
Pastore, now on the books at Roma, told AS: "PSG have always wanted Messi, every year.
"Jokingly, they asked me to persuade him to go to Paris, that the city was beautiful, that there was an ambitious project and so on, they did the same with Di Maria. I told them how nice it was to live in Paris, how strong the team was. In the end, I only convinced Angel."
Could Messi end up in France?
Getty Images
There is still time for PSG to sign Messi, with another window of opportunity this summer.
It may be that they get the chance to acquire Messi as a free agent, with the 33-year-old's contract continuing to run down at Camp Nou.
They can expect to face fierce competition, with Manchester City another big-spending suitor. Messi would, however, find a number of familiar faces at Parc des Princes.
Di Maria remains on PSG's books and recently committed to a new contract, while Leandro Paredes is another international team-mate in France and former Barcelona colleague Neymar is close to committing his future to the Ligue 1 champions.
Fresh terms for Messi remain a distinct possibility, with an all-time great set to reveal his intentions at the end of the 2020-21 campaign.