Reports in Spain suggested that the League Cup winners will make an offer for Barcelona’s record scorer but Pellegrini downplayed such talk.
“It’s just rumours,” he responded.
City, who are very unlikely to try and sign the four-time World Player of the Year, will face Messi at the Nou Camp on Wednesday and the Argentine scored the opening goal for Barcelona in their 2-0 win at the Etihad Stadium in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie.
Meanwhile, Pellegrini has denied that Micah Richards and Joleon Lescott are unhappy at City but said that giving the right-back a new contract is not important right now.
Neither Englishman has been a regular in the City side this season and centre-back Lescott is expected to leave in the summer when his contract expires.
And fellow defender Richards, who is out of contract in 2015, has only been given two league starts by Pellegrini, leading to suggestions he is considering leaving his only club.
But the City manager said: “I don’t think they have any problems. They feel an important part of what we have done so far and they will be important in the future from now until the end of the season.”
However, Pellegrini said he is not thinking about giving Richards a new deal, adding: “I can’t answer now about that. He has one year more of contract here at the club so it is not important at this moment. The important thing is Wigan.”
Written by Steve Milne
