‘It’s like the space race’: Clubs scramble to tempt Lionel Messi on social media

One Twitter user noticed: "Messi shut down the internet with a message sent on a fax machine"

Lionel Messi leaving the pitch after Barcelona's 8-2 defeat to Bayern Munich in the Champions League quarter-final in Lisbon nearly two weeks ago. Picture: AP

The news that Lionel Messi is attempting to leave Barcelona has, unsurprisingly, sent social media into a frenzy – with clubs across the sporting world scrambling to tempt the superstar into their colours.

With his club heavily linked with the maestro, former Oasis singer and Manchester City fan Liam Gallagher likened the rush of transfer speculation to “the space race”.