Premier League clubs Manchester United, Manchester City, and Chelsea are all reportedly interested in acquiring Barcelona superstar Lionel Messi.

Messi, who is a five-time Ballon d'Or awardee, is considered as the best football player in the world today. He has played for no other team in his so far 13-year senior career other than Barcelona and is the club's all-time top-goalscorer with 480 goals in 555 games in all competitions.

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Caught Offside reported that a trio of English top-flight squads are "all ready to swoop" for the Argentina national team captain if Barcelona will not be able to sign him to a contract extension at the end of the season.

Messi's deal at Barça is set to expire in 2018 and the Nou Camp residents are said to be keen on keeping him for the duration of his career. There are rumors that Barcelona is prepared to sell some of their first-team players just to accommodate the financial demands of a new Messi contract.

However, with so little "genuine movement in signing an extension" from the Argentine's camp, other clubs, particularly the three Premier League sides, are said to be "hoping to take advantage of the situation".

SkySports cited football expert Guillem Balague as saying that "Lionel Messi will renew his Barcelona contract" but "Man City, Man United, and Chelsea are waiting in the wings should he consider leaving the club".

"All we have at the moment is Messi finishing his contract in 2018 and Barcelona saying they want to sit down but not offering anything on the table. They mentioned they would meet 'in the two months' but that period passed by and no call was not made to Leo. Now they talk about 'the first three months of the year'. Let's see. They are going about it the wrong way" Balague said.

Balague then said that interested clubs have begun "positioning themselves" as Barça seemed to be hesitant in compensating Messi's requirements and that "message from the club is very alarming".

"It suggests they don't have the financial muscle to renew, not just Messi's contract, but Andres Iniesta's as well, at least at the level they deserve and the level the market is suggesting they deserve," said Balague.

"You didn't hear those kind of statements when Real Madrid were negotiating with Cristiano Ronaldo," he added.  

Tags Football Transfer Rumors, Football Transfer Rumors 2017, lionel messi, FC Barcelona, Manchester United, Manchester City, Chelsea FC