[Picture] Messi United Bound?

Dare we dream the unthinkable and imagine four time Ballon D’Or winner Lionel Messi plying his trade at Old Trafford?

According to reports in the Guardian it may not be as far-fetched as once thought.

Messi is believed to be open to a move away from Barcelona and few clubs can realistically afford a transfer which could exceed the £300 million mark when you factor in fee, wages and add ons.

Manchester City and Chelsea are the only other viable English options for Messi, yet both have obstacles.

City have already been punished for breaking financial fair play rules. Despite his billions Roman Abramovich has been running a much more balanced ship at Chelsea since his initial spending spree over a decade ago. The Londoners are still able to splash the cash when needs be but there’s severe doubts as to whether they’d be willing to launch a bid for the world’s most expensive player and again like City it could challenge their FFP credentials.

Even though United have spent around £200 million since Louis Van Gaal took over the board are reportedly willing to spend even more to get the Reds back on top. Due to United’s huge turnover and earning power FFP isn’t an issue so despite there being several ‘ifs’ and ‘buts’ to any Messi deal, it as the very least a possibility.