Manchester United and Manchester City are monitoring Lionel Messi's situation at Barcelona.

The Sun says both Manchester clubs are on red alert after Barcelona claimed they will NOT break the bank to keep Messi.

United and City would jump at the chance of bringing the Argie superstar, 29, to the Prem.

City are prepared to pay a £100million transfer fee and hand Messi a record £800,000-a-week five-year deal to reunite him with ex-Barca boss Pep Guardiola. Messi has just 18 months left on his deal at the Nou Camp.

But £400,000-a-week contracts for strikers Neymar and Luis Suarez mean Barcelona are close to breaking Uefa's financial fair-play laws.

And Barca CEO Oscar Grau admitted: “We have to be very strict with the budgets, we can't go crazy."

Grau added: “We need to comply with the ratios of debt and the percentage of salaries in the budget. I want the best player in history to remain here.

“We will find the way, I am sure, but we have to make the numbers add up."