Lionel Messi did not ask Barcelona to sign Aguero

Lionel Messi has not thrown his weight around to ask FC Barcelona to sign his close friend, Sergio Aguero, this summer. The Manchester City striker has confirmed that he will be leaving the Etihad Stadium at the end of the current season, and many believe that he is heading to Catalunya.

BBC Sport correspondent Guillem Balague has clarified that it was not Messi's request, but the club is indeed in talks with Aguero believing that it would help convince their captain to stay. Opening the door to Aguero was the club's idea and not a condition laid out by the captain.

The 32-year-old Argentine is one of the Premier League's most prolific scorers, Having netted 258 goals in 388 appearances for the Sky Blues. He will be an asset for Barcelona, and the club thinks that Messi will be happy to have a proven scoring partner by his side. Aguero has been linked with the Catalan giants as soon as he confirmed that he will not renew his contract with Pep Guardiola's side.

The Argentine pair enjoy a close friendship, and have also played together on many occasions under their national flag. Regardless of how Messi feels about the possible signing, the fact remains that Barcelona needs to cough up the finances to make it happen.

Apart from thinking about Aguero's possible contract, Barcelona is still in the middle of drawing up a convincing offer for Messi himself. The season is quickly drawing to a close, and the Argentine will be out of contract by June 30. However, even after four independent audits on Barcelona's finances, they have not reached an agreement with Messi. Club President Joan Laporta will need to start making moves if he plans to keep his promise to the members who voted for him on the premise that he will convince Messi to stay.

Nevertheless, Balague insists that "the club and Aguero's camp are talking," and it may be one step towards the final goal of getting Messi to put pen to paper.