Turan confessed in an interview with GQ that he would like to have played for Pep Guardiola's Barça side, adding that playing alongside Messi was one of the main reasons why. Now he will be able to do that. "If we're being fictional, I would have like to have played in the Barcelona of Guardiola," he said. "To give passes to Messi... that wouldn't be bad!"
He also praised the Argentine after a game between Atletico Madrid and Barça. "Leo Messi is not from this world. He's an extraterrestrial. For me, without doubt, he is the best player in the histroy of the game," Arda said after changing shirts with the Barça No.10.