London, Aug 19 (ANI): Manchester City had once accidentally made a 30 million pound bid for Argentine superstar Lionel Messi, according to a new book which details the history of the Premier League champions.
A breakdown in telephone communication between club officials on the day, when Sheikh Mansour completed his 210 million pound takeover of the club in August 2009, led to the offer being made to Barcelona, for the best player in the world.
The extraordinary episode has been revealed by former City chief executive Garry Cook in the book, 'The Manchester City Years' by Gary James.
Senior club officials based in Manchester, London and Abu Dhabi were formulating Sheikh Mansour's plans by telephone, when their conversation was misinterpreted.
"He (an executive) made a comment like 'it's all getting messy," the Daily Mirror quoted Cook, as explaining, in the book.
However, via the telephones and other communication lines, it somehow translated into 'get Messi.'
"An offer was made for Lionel Messi of about ?30million. Needless to say, it was rejected," Cook added.
Barcelona rejected the proposal, and within hours Chelsea had agreed the 32 million pound capture of Brazilian star Robinho from Real Madrid, the report said. (ANI)
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