Barcelona forward Lionel Messi 'agreed £225m Chelsea move in 2014'

Chelsea were reportedly on the brink of signing Lionel Messi in 2014 before an intervention from the Barcelona forward's father.

The Argentina international has been linked with a move to the Premier League on several occasions, including earlier in 2020 when Manchester City showed firm interest in the superstar.

However, for varying reasons, the 33-year-old has never been able to seal a transfer to England's top flight, seeing him spend his entire professional career so far at Camp Nou.

According to Italian journalist Gianluca Di Marzio, then-Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho and owner Roman Abramovich made a play for Messi in 2014.

In his book 'Grand Hotel Calciomercato', Di Marzio claims that Mourinho managed to tempt the player into a switch to Stamford Bridge via FaceTime, while Abramovich was prepared to pay a £225m release clause.

Nevertheless, Messi's father and agent Jorge Messi is said to have put a stop to discussions, insisting that his son remained with the Catalan giants.