Mueez Ajao
– Lionel Messi has heaped praise on former Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola by jokingly saying that his style of play “did football a lot of harm.”
– Messi played under Guardiola during one of the most successful periods in Barcelona’s history, between 2008 and 2012.
– “Guardiola did football a lot of harm because he made it look so easy and so simple that everyone wanted to copy him,” Messi said smiling.
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– “Later I found many ‘Guardiolas’ out there and you realise what we did and what that was.”
– During those years at Barcelona, Guardiola won 14 titles, including the treble in his first season, and ended 2009 with a record-breaking haul of six trophies.
– Guardiola left Barca in 2012. He went on to coach Bayern Munich for three seasons before taking the helm of Manchester City in 2016.
– His playing style of play revolves around holding possession and applying high pressure to break down opponents.
– Asked if the Spanish tactician was the best coach he’s ever had, Messi, who is in his second season at Paris Saint-Germain after his departure from Barcelona, said: “Without a doubt. He has something special, above all how he watched and prepared for matches and how he communicates, because of how he transmitted it to you.”
– The Argentina captain declared in the past that having Guardiola and Luis Enrique as managers helped him “to grow a lot in football and in the tactical wisdom that they taught me.”
