Van Gaal Singles Out Messi As The Main Problem Of Barcelona
Louis Van Gaal believes Lionel Messi is indeed the underlying problem of Spanish giants, Barcelona citing that recent managers of the Blaugranas have handed the Argentine too much freedom in recent years.
The former Manchester United and Barcelona manager thinks has hit out at Messi, claiming that the 32 year old should be adapting his play to that of the team rather than the other way round.
Van Gaal believes Messi has too much freedom at the Nou Camp with recent Barcelona managers prioritising the five time Balon D’Or individual talents over the team.
In spite of their Laliga title win, Barcelona fell short of the UCL mark losing out to eventual winners, Liverpool in the semi-finals after the Reds staged a remarkable comeback at Anfield.
This loss has left Messi with only four European titles with the Blaugranas failing to reach the UCL final since they last won it in 2015.
Van Gaal strongly believes that the problem with Barcelona at the moment boils down to a single man – Messi.
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He made this known in an interview with El Pais where he explained that the six-time European golden boot winner was the reason behind Ernesto Valverde’s repeated failures on the European front.
“I believe that there is nothing more important than the team player,” said the Dutch gaffer.
“Barca suffer from that. I think Messi should ask himself how it is possible that he’s gone so long without winning a Champions League.
“Look at Barcelona. How many Champions Leagues have they won with the one everybody says is the best player in the world? Look at Neymar at PSG. How many Champions Leagues has he won?
“He’s the best individual player in the world because his stats are amazing. But why hasn’t he won a Champions League for five years?
“As captain, you have to ask yourself why the team doesn’t win in Europe. I think that Messi is also responsible for what is happening at Barcelona, not just the coach.
“They have a squad of 30 players and I believe that Messi should adapt himself to the team, and not the other way around.”
