What if Lionel Messi was in Fantasy Premier League? Analysis of value, position and points

With Lionel Messi having told the Barcelona board that he wishes to leave the club this summer, activating a clause in his contract that would allow him to do so on a free transfer, it's little wonder Europe's elite have sat up and took notice.

The Argentine is now odds on with some bookmakers to make the move to Manchester City, with only an elite group of clubs - potentially including rivals Manchester United - capable of taking on the wages of one of the games greatest ever players.

With a Premier League move potentially on the cards, it's not just the managers of both Manchester clubs that will be keeping tabs on the situation, but also the millions of Fantasy Premier League managers eagerly awaiting the new campaign.

With that in mind, it got us thinking just how many points Lionel Messi might get should he make the move, and the price one would have to pay to get him in your squad. Another key consideration is whether the powers that be would class Messi as a midfielder - as they do with Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane, for example - or whether he would enter the game as a forward.

Either way, we've got you covered, calculating just how many points Messi would have won if you transferred his 2019/20 LaLiga stats into the Premier League. Admittedly a big if, but a good indicator nonetheless.

We start, as Messi has tended to do so, with goals. The Barca star managed a modest 25 by his standards last season, which would have earned him 100 points as a forward or 125 as a midfielder. Not a bad platform to build from.

When factoring in assists, and this is where Messi is likely to be left slightly short changed, the Argentine managed 21 last season via Opta, though that does not include all of the criteria that FPL consider as 'assist-worthy'. One of those discrepencies we can account for is penalties won, but with Messi converting to solitary spot kick he won himself last season, there are no additional points there. At three points per assist, that's another 63.

Moreover, there are two points up for grabs for every appearance of 60 minutes or more, of which Messi made 31, and one point for appearances shorter than an hour, of which Messi made two. That's 64 more points.

This is where things get a little more fanciful, but allow us that much when we address bonus points. Between one and three are awarded for the 'best three performers in a match' according to FPL. While we don't use the same system to decide as much, we do have some pretty handy ratings of our own to give another decent impression of how Messi might fair.

The iconic 33-year-old earned 22 WhoScored man of the match awards last season, was the second highest rated player in a game on five occasions and ranked third once. That's a further 77 potential bonus points.

Besides the difference in points for goalscoring midfielders and forwards, the other main difference between the two is that midfielders earn one point for a clean sheet, where forwards aren't so lucky. If, then, Messi was considered among the former, he would have earned an additional 14 points for the clean sheets he played an admittedly limited part in for Barcelona.

With minus points to consider too, notably one docked for yellow cards - Messi received four - and two for missing a penalty - something the magician was able to avoid last season, we come to two grand totals.

Were Messi to enter the game as a forward he would have earned a whopping 300 points. If he were to be added as a midfielder, that tally would rise to a mind-blowing 339!

With Kevin De Bruyne top scoring on last season's game with 251 - starting this season at £11.5m - it's safe to say Lionel Messi would set you back a huge amount of your £100m budget.

The highest score recorded on Fantasy Premier League was fittingly achieved by Mo Salah, with an exceptional 303 by virtue of being considered a midfielder, which Messi surely must by the same logic. Meanwhile, the highest price tag was £14m, bestowed upon Cristiano Ronaldo, Thierry Henry and Robin van Persie during their time in England's top-flight.

We can say with some certainty that if Lionel Messi does make the move to England, he'll usurp said trio in terms of his in game value, and Salah's aforementioned points record would be at great risk. Things could get... well, you get the idea!