Barcelona are in meltdown. Not only have they lost top spot in LaLiga to rivals Real Madrid having sacked Ernesto Valverde but new boss Quique Setien must deal with the fallout as his star man and Director of Football clash.
Lionel Messi did not take kindly to Eric Abidal speaking publicly about the club’s troubles this season and was quick to call him out. In an interview with Catalan newspaper Sport on Tuesday, the Frenchman claimed: “Lots of players were not satisfied [with Valverde] and nor did they work a lot.
“There was also an issue of internal communication. The relationship manager-dressing room has always been good but there are things, as a former player, I can smell. I told the club what I thought and that [I thought] a decision had to be made.”
Messi snapped back via Instagram: “I honestly don’t like doing these things but I think everyone has to be responsible for their tasks and take care of their decisions. The players [have to be responsible for] what happens on the pitch and we are the first to recognize it when we did not do things well.
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“Those responsible off the pitch must also assume their responsibilities and above all take responsibility for their decisions. I think when he [Abidal] talks about players, he has to give names because if not he is tarnishing everyone and fueling speculation that is not true.”
All is not well at Camp Nou.
“There wasn’t much time between the interview coming out and Messi reacting to it, he was on it like a flash,” Football journalist Rik Sharma, who is based in Spain covering Barcelona, told The Sportsman. “In that brief period, it seemed interesting and not altogether surprising, because for a while it’s been known Valverde wasn’t pushing the players to work hard.”
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Messi is not known for making statements, he much prefers to do his talking on the pitch and so it has come as a major shock in Catalonia. “He even acknowledged that in his post in the first line,” Sharma explains of the Barca talisman’s reserved approach.
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