Lionel Messi warns Arsenal and Liverpool he hopes Cesc and Mascherano will join him at Barcelona

Lionel Messi has warned all-conquering Barcelona they must not stand still - and has pinpointed Liverpool's Javier Mascherano and Arsenal star Cesc Fabregas as perfect recruits.

The Spanish giants may have achieved an unprecedented Spanish League, Cup and European treble last season, but the Argentina star believes they can still get stronger.

'We were spectacular last season and we hope that this term, we will be able to do the same, or at least repeat a little of what we achieved,' Messi told Catalan newspaper Sport.
'We were surprised by what we did last season but if players such as those who have been mentioned in the press arrive at the club to strengthen the team, it would be even better because it is important to be stronger.
'I hope Mascherano can come and we can form a solid partnership. His qualities are always appreciated. The same goes for Fabregas. A good footballer like him who can contribute a lot is always welcome.'

Barcelona boss Pep Guardiola and technical secretary Txiki Begeristain have discussed recuiting both midfielders, though will be able to afford just one this summer.

The Spaniards would prefer Mascherano and have already spoken to his agent Walter Tamer, but Liverpool boss Rafa Benitez is determined to hold on to both the Argentina star and Real Madrid target Xabi Alonso.
The 25-year-old is thought to be keen on a move but has told Barca he won't force the issue with Benitez because the Spaniards are stalling on where to concentrate a fairly limited budget.

Barca may be prepared to pay up to £30m for Mascherano but are also desperate to add a new attacking option.

Like Chelsea and Real Madrid, they are ready to to have one final go at signing Franck Ribery from Bayern Munich, though their second option is to renew a bid for Fabregas.

Arsenal star Andrey Arshavin and Manchester City forward Robinho have both been mentioned as alternatives, as has Valencia players Juan Mata and David Silva, but Fabregas has plenty of support within the Nou Camp and is largely seen as someone who will rejoin them sooner or later.
Arsenal have consistently insisted their skipper is not for sale and the 22-year-old recently said he was 'whole-heartedly committed' to the Gunners, but that hasn't stopped reports that Barca are willing to pay £35m for him.

In that case, Fabregas would be paired with Xavi in central midfielder, with Andres Iniesta played in an advanced role on the left wing, which he has performed before.

The future of Manchester City target Samuel Eto'o is still uncertain, but goalkeeper Victor Valdes -linked to Manchester United - and midfielder Yaya Toure have agreed new contracts.

Bringing in players has been more difficult, though Messi insists they should not concern themselves with the spending spree at Real Madrid that has seen Kaka, Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema and Raul Albiol go to the Bernabeu.
'I am with Barcelona and I worry only about my team,' said Messi. 'Kaka has a lot of quality, but he will have to adapt himself. I can also talk about Iniesta. Training with him is the best.

'But both Cristiano and Kaka are fantastic players who will give Madrid a lot of strength. "El Clasico" is going to be unbelievable when it comes time to play, and yes - Barcelona will win again.'

Owen arrives for Manchester United medical ahead of shock free transfer to the champions

Michael Owen was today undergoing a stringent medical before completing his free transfer to Manchester United.

The former England striker, whose contract with Newcastle expired on Wednesday, is on the brink of a sensational move to United after accepting the terms of a pay-as-you-play one-year deal with the champions.

Talks were understood to have been continuing last night and the 29-year-old, who made his name playing for United's arch-rivals Liverpool, was pictured arriving at the champions' Carrington training complex this morning.
Ferguson believes the 29-year-old is a gamble worth taking if he can stay injury-free and return to the kind of goalscoring form that made him European Footballer of the Year in 2001.
It is believed Owen could be offered as little as £20,000 a week as a basic salary but with massive performance-related bonuses which could take him close to the £110,000 a week he was on at Newcastle United.

It has been a difficult time for Owen. Dropped from the England squad by Fabio Capello and the captain of the woeful Newcastle side who were relegated at the end of last season, he was ridiculed recently when his management company advertised his credentials in a brochure sent to a number of clubs.

There was thought to have been interest from Aston Villa and Everton, while Hull City manager Phil Brown made public his wish to lure Owen to the KC Stadium.

But agent Tony Stephens may have negotiated a dream move that could propel him back into the England squad in time for the World Cup.

The move would be a free transfer as Owen's Newcastle contract expired on Wednesday.
Neither United nor Owen's management company WMG would comment last night, but it is believed he is travelling to Manchester today for a medical, having
already undergone an assessment of his troublesome knee yesterday.

The move failed to impress United fans, particularly after the club said they had received £80million in a single payment from Real Madrid for Cristiano Ronaldo and they had been linked to the likes of Franck Ribery and Karim Benzema.

The Republik of Mancunia website, under the heading ‘God No, Not Michael
Owen’, lists 10 reasons why the club
should not sign him.

One fan wrote: ‘Not in a million years. I’d rather bring Bellion back . . . than have Michael “I’m a crocked scouse” Owen.’

But Owen has proved himself an excellent strike partner to Wayne Rooney with England and Ferguson clearly considers him a decent acquisition when the financial risk is so small. The United boss declined to move for Owen when the player left Real Madrid for Newcastle four years ago in a £16million deal.

His medical record will be a worry, however, having gone down with injury or illness 16 times during his time at Newcastle. Within his first four months at St James' Park, Owen pulled a hamstring, strained his groin and broke a metatarsal. Having signed for a club record £16m, he made only 58 Premier League starts.

Chelsea and Manchester United snub: Franck Ribery admits he wants to sign for Real Madrid

Franck Ribery has admitted he wants to leave Bayern Munich - but warned Chelsea and Manchester United that he only has eyes for Real Madrid.

Chelsea are determined to make a final push for the France forward, despite his German employers insisting he is not for sale.

And United could reignite their interest after missing out on fellow France forward Karim Benzema, who yesterday agreed to join Real Madrid from Lyon for a fee that could reach £35million.
And now 26-year-old Ribery has tried to force a move to the Bernabeu by going public on his desire to join the New Galacticos.
'It's decided, I want to leave,' he told respected French newspaper L'Equipe. 'It will be to Real or nothing.'

Ribery also said that he would, 'wait and see how things go. Then I would quickly like to have a discussion with the Bayern management'.
Reports in Spain, meanwhile, say Madrid's next target is Valencia attacking midfielder David Silva, who could join for £21.5million.

Madrid newspaper Marca claims an agreement to sign Xabi Alonso and Alvaro Arbeloa from Liverpool is imminent and that 23-year-old Silva - also a target for Liverpool - is next.
Silva's capture would take Madrid's summer outlay above the £200m mark - twice the amount it would cost to buy Newcastle United - even before fees for Alonso and Arbeloa are taken into account.

Bayern have suggested the fee for Ribery could be £60m, but his desire to leave could drive down the price.

The former Marseille player will turn down any offer to extend his current contract which is worth £115,000 a week and runs until 2011, meaning next summer his value would depreciate significantly.

But both Bayern and Ribery are aware there are few superstars left for United to recruit - Valencia's David Villa is set to join Barcelona - and an offer of around £50m plus £150,000 a week is likely to secure his signature.

It would also represent good business for Bayern who signed Ribery for a club record £18m from Marseille two years ago.
However, Bayern are still insisting publicly that there will be no deal. Bayern general manager said: 'Franck wants to go to Real? For us, it changes absolutely nothing. Life is not always a fairy-tale.

'Real did not gave us a concrete proposal. Real's directors have wanted to come to Munich and we have told them they would do better to save on a few tickets. We do not need their money and we keep Franck against all odds.'

The Bundesliga club's new boss Louis van Gaal said: 'I want to lead the world's best players and Ribery is part of that.'

FIFA Begins Inspection Visit In Nigeria

The first stop-over by Warner's team on Friday was to the country's commercial capital Lagos. They will continue their inspection Monday in the capital city of Abuja. The other cities to be visited by Fifa officials include Kaduna, Kano, Calabar, Warri, Bauchi and Enugu.

This will be Fifa's third visit to Nigeria in respect to the Under-17 Championship. In earlier visits, Fifa officials have urged the Local Organising Committee (LOC) for the tournament to upgrade existing facilities and infrastructure.

Nigeria will play host to the Fifa competition after the government rescinded an earlier decision to withdraw as hosts because they could not afford to do so. However, the budget to stage the event was drastically slashed with Fifa also assuring the government it will assist by footing some of the expenses.

The country's Vice-President, Goodluck Jonathan, is personally supervising the organisation of the championship.

"I am Mad"

Emmanuel Adebayor was sent off during Arsenal's 1-1 draw with Liverpool on Sunday for a second bookable offense, after raising his elbow and foot against the Reds' defender Alvaro Arbeloa.

The Spaniard fell, according to the Arsenal striker, as is someone had "put a knife in him", and Adebayor was clearly furious with both the Liverpool player and the referee after the game.

"The defender threw himself on the floor as if I put a knife in him. I hope when the referee goes home and watches it on the TV, he will see it was a foul but I didn’t deserve a card," the Togolese said.

"Of course I’m annoyed. I cannot say he cheated but what he did wasn’t fair play at all.

"It was a mistake by the ref. He said it was for the leg but if I don’t put my body in there I would never score a goal in this league."

His manager, Arsene Wenger, was in complete agreement with the player's views, and felt that referee Howard Webb had cost his team two valuable points.

"It was a very soft sending off," said the Arsenal boss.

"Today we had the ‘Be a Gooner, Be a Giver’ charity appeal — you cannot say the referee was a Gooner today but he was a giver because he gave us yellow cards we did not deserve.

"Every week I sit in front of you when we play away from home and you say ‘People get in your faces and you cannot cope with it’. Have you seen anybody sent off?

"Do you want me to show you our players and the damage done to them after the game? It’s a joke."

Meanwhile, Arsenal also have a massive injury worry over skipper Cesc Fabregas, who suffered medial ligament damage after tangling with Xabi Alonso during the game.