Manchester United Transfer News: Lionel Messi 'Learning English' Amid Rumours

The transfer links attaching Barcelona superstar Lionel Messi with a move to Manchester United have been strengthened by news the Argentina international has started to take English lessons.

Spanish football expert Guillem Balague appeared on talkSPORT's Sports Bar recently to reinforce the notion Messi is "closer than ever" to leaving Camp Nou, and he suggested the Premier League is a possible destination:

"

He’s never been closer to leaving Barcelona. He is thinking about it. 

He has heard from Sergio Aguero and Cesc Fabregas how wonderful England and the Premier League is. There’s an attraction there for a new challenge.

He’s maturing, he wants to imagine himself in England and he watches the Premier League. He’s learning English in case he needs it. He is preparing for that possibility.

"

As one of the biggest clubs in the world, Manchester United have been frequently named as one of the outfits capable of enticing Messi to England.

Balague went on to say Arsenal attempted to lure the South American to north London around the same period in which they signed Cesc Fabregas in 2003, adding: 

"

Real Madrid tried—so did Arsenal. At the time when Gerard Pique and Cesc Fabregas were agreed [the former moving to Manchester United and the latter switching to Arsenal], the three of them were in the same team and Messi was approached as well.

"

Lalo R. Villar/Associated Press

Messi grew up with Newell's Old Boys in his native Argentina before making the move to Barcelona's academy in 2001, emerging as a senior player at the age of 17 before going on to become the marvel we know today.

He's spent his entire senior career with the Camp Nou club, but ESPN FC's Alex Shaw encouraged the forward to move on from Catalonia, if only to finally find out how he'd fare in the Premier League:

Of course, there could be an entirely more innocent reason behind Messi's sudden choice to learn English. After all, it is the third-most commonly spoken language in the world, according to Ethnologue, and the 28-year-old may merely be taking the time to round off his already glistening CV.

The English giants clearly have motivation to pull off a deal for Messi, though, considering his shirts are reported by Spanish newspaper Sport to be the most popular:

For so long, it's seemed as though any pursuit of Messi would be an exercise in futility, and Barcelona's consistent success on both the domestic and European scene has only given him reason to stay.

However, with reports from Spanish radio station Cope claiming problems with Spain's tax authorities could force the attacker to exit Catalonia, perhaps the stars are aligning for him to leave (h/t the Independent's Tom Sheen).

Emilio Morenatti/Associated Press

It goes without saying Barca won't let their main talisman leave without a fight, but any hope United have of acquiring his talents would certainly be aided if he were to state his intention to depart.

A question is often posed as to how Messi would fair on a cold weekday night in Stoke. If his decision to learn English is a genuine sign of his intention to move to the Premier League, we may finally find out the answer.