Manchester City have abandoned their quest to land Lionel Messi from Barcelona.

Pep Guardiola now favours a move for Borussia Dortmund’s Erling Haaland, according to the UK Mirror.

Messi had long been linked with a reunion with his former manager since last year, when he tried to engineer a move away from Spain.

City were one of Messi’s two feasible destinations alongside Paris Saint-Germain.

Now however, with talk that Messi may yet remain at Camp Nou, City have moved to make Haaland their first choice.

Haaland’s representatives are expected to fly into England to hold talks with up to four clubs, as Haaland looks set to depart Borussia Dortmund imminently.