Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo are the two superpower names in the football world. The duo never fails to impress. Now, the Argentinian has garnered some huge praise from his manager.
Barcelona got back to business with a 3-0 win over Deportivo Alaves on Saturday night. The Catalans began their title defense with a late second-half blitz, courtesy of Phillippe Coutinho’s goal which was sandwiched between two by Leo Messi. The Argentinian scored a lovely free-kick and added another one in stoppage time.
Barcelona’s newly elected captain was all over the pitch in the match against La Liga’s Basque minnows. Messi usually leaves all of us in awe, but now has uplifted his manager’s views also to a new height. Ernesto Valverde was left amazed by the little man’s exploits and called him a ‘genius’.
“Messi is a genius,” Valverde told a news conference. “We’re lucky to be able to see him every day. We’re lucky to be involved in football during the era in which he is playing — we want him to pull a rabbit from the hat every day. There’s still room for Messi to surprise us. He always surprises you — he never ceases to amaze me, honestly. You have to be ready to expect anything from Messi because he sees what no one else sees.”
Lionel Messi has already garnered praise from several of his bosses including Pep Guardiola. The current Manchester City manager once famously said,” don’t write about him, don’t describe him. Just watch him!” And another time, Messi has left one more of his managers in complete surprise of what he does week in and week out.
Author’s Take
Lionel Messi put in another masterclass performance in yesterday’s match against Alaves. The Barcelona captain said earlier this week that he was determined in getting the Champions League glory back to the Camp Nou and looks highly determined to do so. With performances like that on Saturday night, Barcelona could be an unstoppable force.
