Sports Mole rounds up all of the latest transfer news in La Liga on Monday, November 23.
Monday morning's La Liga transfer talk news roundup:
Manchester City 'end Lionel Messi pursuit'
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Manchester City will make no attempt to prise Lionel Messi away from Barcelona, according to Spanish football expert Semra Hunter.
Having been at war with the powers-that-be at Camp Nou for the past few months, Messi continues to be linked with a move away from Camp Nou after initially submitting a transfer request in the summer.
City have been regarded as the favourites to land Messi ever since, but Hunter has claimed that Pep Guardiola's side have accepted that they cannot fund a move for the soon-to-be free agent amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Speaking to Sky Sports News, Hunter said: "I have it on good authority from someone close to the situation that Manchester City are not going to bid for Lionel Messi. Based on the information I have, as of today, that door is closed.
"They have two reasons for this: age and finances. Talking about age, he is heading into the twilight years of his career and you'll be bringing on board a Messi that is different to what we've seen for the last 17 years with Barcelona. Even he himself has said that he is getting closer to the dreaded r-word of retirement more so than anyone cares to admit.
"That goes hand-in-hand with finances because even though he would be able to join for free, his wages are astronomically high - he is earning about €100m (£89.2m) a year.
"That would be a huge financial burden for any club to take on, especially given the fact that we are in the middle of a global pandemic. Either you have to offload some of the highest earners or you have to sell off players or make other tweaks in other parts of the club depending on whatever formula a club would want to use to bring Messi on board.
"Perhaps, clubs would rather invest that money into bringing younger players in or bringing in reinforcements in positions where they actually need those reinforcements."
City manager Guardiola recently admitted that he would like to see Messi hang up his boots at Barcelona, where he boasts six goals and four assists across all competitions this season.
Juventus chief rubbishes Cristiano Ronaldo exit speculation
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Juventus director Fabio Paratici has insisted that Cristiano Ronaldo will not be leaving the club in the near future.
The 35-year-old has scored 73 times in 95 appearances for Juve since arriving from Real Madrid, including eight goals in six outings during the 2020-21 campaign.
Ronaldo has a contract with the Old Lady until the summer of 2022, but both Manchester United and Madrid have been linked with the Portugal international in recent weeks.
A recent report claimed that the former Sporting Lisbon youngster had been in contact with senior figures at the Bernabeu to discuss a possible return to the Spanish capital.
However, Paratici has rubbished rumours that the attacker could be on his way out of the club.
"I can reassure you about Cristiano Ronaldo's future here at Juventus," Paratici told DAZN. "We don't pay too much attention to transfer rumours, there is lots of news every day."
The Portuguese scored a brace in Juve's 2-0 win over Cagliari in Serie A on Saturday.
More transfer news from La Liga:
Paris Saint-Germain 'considering Neymar sale to fund new Kylian Mbappe deal'
Paris Saint-Germain are considering the sale of Neymar if it means being able to fund a new deal for Kylian Mbappe, according to a report. Read more.
Inter Milan 'priced out of a move for David Alaba'
Inter Milan are not in the race to sign Bayern Munich defender David Alaba, according to a report. Read more.
Gerard Pique injury 'could force Barcelona into transfer market'
Barcelona will reportedly consider entering the January transfer market after Gerard Pique suffered a long-term injury at the weekend. Read more.
Jules Kounde confirms Manchester City interest
Sevilla defender Jules Kounde admits that he held an interest in signing for Manchester City earlier this year. Read more.
