Pep hails Messi ahead of Euro tie

PEP Guardiola admits he does not know what to say to his Manchester City players to stop Lionel Messi.

City face a stern test of their Champions League credentials, and their progress under Guardiola, as they take on the Catalan's former club at the Nou Camp tonight.

With winning 14 trophies in four glorious seasons in charge of Barca, Guardiola is well aware of just how ruthless the reigning Spanish champions ­- with the ever-dangerous Messi at their heart ­- can be.

Asked about Messi at his pre-match conference, Guardiola said: "I don't know what instructions I can give the players to control the talent.

"Ninety minutes is a long time. They will have a moment and they are so precise. They don't need to create a lot of chances to score a goal.

"It is a good test for us, to know our level against - for me - the best team."

Guardiola has already signed goalkeeper Claudio Bravo from his old club since taking charge at City but he was irritated by a suggestion he tried to tempt more Barca players to move to the Etihad Stadium.

Interestingly, however, he did not completely dismiss the suggestion that Messi may one day want to play in England.

He said: "If you are talking about this summer, I never called Messi. I never called Neymar, Luis Suarez, (Sergio) Busquets, (Andres) Iniesta - I didn't call anybody.

"In the case of Leo, I really wish him to play here and finish his career here - play here for a long time.

"But maybe he will think, 'OK I want to go play somewhere else' because he wants to live a different experience."