'He's gonna join Hibs' - Andy Murray jokes about Lionel Messi transfer with icon set to leave Barcelona

Barcelona icon set to leave La Liga outfit

Andy Murray jokingly suggested that Lionel Messi (inset) was on his way to Hibs

Andy Murray might have lost in straight sets to Milos Raonic in the round of 16 at the Western and Southern Open in New York but the Scot was in a playful mood during his post-match press conference.

Going over the finer details of his 6-2, 6-2 defeat to the big-serving Canadian, the 33-year-old was asked by one journalist about Lionel Messi’s potential departure from Barcelona and the football fan couldn’t help but interrupt to make a reference to his beloved Hibs.

The reporter said, “We know that Lionel Messi will quit Barcelona and one of the ideas, the main idea is..." with Murray interjecting to suggest: “He's gonna join Hibs”.

The clip has been viewed more than 34,000 times on Twitter and has garnered more than 250 retweets and nearly 800 likes at the time of writing.

Murray’s maternal grandfather Roy Erskine was on the Easter Road side’s books during the 1950s after completing national service, but the full-back never made a first-team appearance in green and white despite making a handful of appearances including in an East of Scotland Shield match.

However, Andy and brother Jamie have kept Hibs in the family and each purchased a cardboard cut-out of themselves to sit in the East Stand while fans aren’t permitted in stadiums.

Messi made his debut for Barcelona in 2004, and has scored 645 goals in 763 appearances for the Catalan giants.

He is understood to be keen on triggering a clause in his contract allowing him to leave the club for free but Barca chiefs claim the clause expired earlier this year and that the player is contracted to the club until 2021 with a €700 million buy-out fee.