The Blues are now the capital's premier club when it comes to spending power and signing top talent
Frank Lampard, during his playing days with Chelsea, and Barcelona legend Lionel Messi.
Clubs across Europe will have been put on high alert at the prospect of signing the world’s best player, Lionel Messi.
And they will include Chelsea, now arguably the top London destination for world-class players wanting to test themselves in the Premier League.
The Argentinian superstar was reported as growing frustrated with life at Barcelona, the only club he has represented at a senior level just last month.
And now it is claimed by Esporte Interativo that Messi has asked to leave following the latest Champions League humiliation at the hands of Bayern Munich.
Messi topped the La Liga charts for both goals and assists again this season, leading the way on both counts with 25 and 21 respectively. But Barca fell behind Real Madrid in the title race, finishing second, and their star man is growing frustrated.
As a result, the Barcelona board have been criticised for failing to back up Messi’s talent with a good enough squad, but it could be too late.
The 33-year-old is thought to have a deal allowing him to walk away from the Catalan club at the end of each season, and there’s plenty of speculation that he’s considering doing just that.
The wealth of Manchester City, not to mention Messi’s links with former coach Pep Guardiola, ex-Barca director Txiki Begiristain and close friend Sergio Aguero, would logically put them at the front of the queue if he wanted a new challenge in England.
But if he wanted to work and live in London, then Chelsea would surely be his first choice, the club having usurped Arsenal as the capital’s number one for world-class talent in the Roman Abramovic era.
Even though not every deal has worked out, the likes of Andriy Shevchenko, Fernando Torres, Eden Hazard, Deco and Didier Drogba all opted to go to Stamford Bridge at a time when they were considered among European football’s best and brightest.
There’s no better example of that tide turning than Ashley Cole, arguably the world’s best left-back at the time, leaving the Gunners for Chelsea in 2006.
That’s continued into Frank Lampard’s reign as Blues manager, with sought-after stars like Timo Werner and Hakim Ziyech buying into his project at Chelsea this summer.
The Blues are consistently amongst the top 10 clubs in the global Deloitte Football Money League, and even if they have a long way to go in terms of usurping Arsenal in silverware, they are catching up fast.
Lionel Messi looks dejected after Barcelona's 8-2 defeat to Bayern Munich in the Champions League
Chelsea have won seven league titles compared to the Gunners’ 13, but have claimed English football’s top prize five times since the Gunners last did so in 2004.
They’ve also delivered the European silverware that has eluded Arsenal, being the first and only London club to win the Champions League, in 2012, before claiming a further two Europa League crowns, including outclassing Unai Emery’s Gunners with a 4-1 victory in last year’s final.
It still remains unlikely that Messi would join Chelsea - or any other club, to be honest - but he has first-hand experience of experience of how competitive they’ve been at the top of the European game, more so than any other Premier League side he’s faced.
Not that he is necessarily a fan. "There are players here who hate Chelsea more than Real Madrid," an uncharacteristically spiky Messi, then still a teenager, told the News of the World back in 2006.
"I never thought I would hear myself say that. I also never thought I would see something worse than the Boca and River Plate rivalry or Brazil vs Argentina - but this (Barca vs Chelsea) is. We would rather play Arsenal, Manchester United or anyone else than be on the pitch with Chelsea."
Barcelona have beaten Arsenal in five of seven Champions League meetings since 2006, with Messi memorably putting four past them in a 4-1 victory in 2010. But he’s been given tougher tests by Chelsea, and failed to score against them until a round of 16 tie in 2018.
There have been six draws, two Chelsea wins and two Barcelona successes in 10 Champions League clashes since 2006, with the Blues famously coming out on top in the semi-finals in 2012.
Chelsea were the last English club to sign a Ballon d’Or winner when Shevchenko arrived from AC Milan back in 2006.
In the unlikely event that Messi wanted to move to London, they would surely be at the front of the queue to do it again.
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