Lionel Messi has filled the headlines of the football press over and over again in recent months and the Argentine was a constant topic for us too. From the big announced upheaval after the 8-0 defeat against FC Bayern Munich at last year’s Champions League final to his almost legendary training strike because he wanted to change clubs, Lionel Messi has indeed made sure that in recent months the world of football never got boring. However, his image suffered massively during this time and he is primarily responsible for that.
He has lost a lot of credit with the Barcelona fans and Messi is no longer the number 1 popular figure in the international fan community, although he probably never was anyway. The calls for a Messi-out at Barca are getting louder and louder and that’s why today we want to list 5 reasons why Barcelona should really part with Messi this summer.
Since his contract is expiring anyway, this would not be a difficult step, but those in charge of Barca want to hold on to their identification figure and so the announced upheaval may take a few more years to complete.
Reason 1: Too much power in a player is never a good foundation
We know it from FC Bayern Munich with regard to coach Nico Kovac and also from other examples. If a player has too much power in a football club, then this is a bad foundation, because basically they should be at the bottom of the club hierarchy and are primarily subordinate to the coach. If there are problems, players should usually first contact the coach. When it comes to contractual matters, the step is to become a sports manager.
However, Messi has gained too much power at Barca due to his long stint at FC Barcelona, his influence over his teammates and his global fame. The fact that a player boycotted training for days is usually a no-go and should basically be severely punished. Lionel Messi had the impression that he was being allowed to do so. Behavior like a stubborn teenager was shown and this cost FC Barcelona valuable preparation time in the end. Although things are going quite well in the Spanish league, the club is currently in second place in the table, but they have already been eliminated from PSG in the Champions League.
Also fed up with the Messi strike, Barcelona fans expressed their anger, mostly complaining about how much Messi is making a year. And this is exactly the second reason why Barca should part ways with Messi this summer.
Reason 2: The cost factor no longer pays off
If you are honest, Messi has not been worth his expensive money for a few years. Of course, he is the club’s figurehead and at the same time brings a lot of money into Barca’s coffers despite high paychecks, but overall he has slipped significantly in terms of performance on the pitch compared to a Ronaldo in recent years. Messi has never been the great fighter on the pitch. The best example of this is again the 8-0 defeat against the German record champions Bayern in the 19/20 Champions League tournament. He wasn’t a leader there and has slumped around the pitch instead of encouraging the team to fight for the honor of Barcelona.
Many fans of the club were very upset when it became public some time ago what the club pays Messi per year. These are sums that no athlete has earned for their performance. Of course, Messi has been one of the best players in the entire world for a good 10 years, but the wages paid for an athlete are no longer fair and so the question arises, why is the money in on the side of Barcelona has not adapted to the player’s performance in recent years.
Losing Messi to another club wouldn’t be great, but with the money saved you would have had the chance to buy a multitude of new and potential future stars. After Lionel Messi leaves, be it this summer or soon in the future, there is a big problem for Barca, which leads to the third reason why Barca should part with Messi sooner.
Reason 3: The team is too committed to Messi
If a soccer team is too focused on one player, this can work wonderfully if all the gears mesh and are well oiled. But if it is only stuck in one place, this creates a big problem for the team and this can be seen again and again at FC Barcelona. If Messi is not at the height of his performance, the Catalans will be smacked. If Messi goes well, a win is a high probability. However, in the last 2-3 years it has been seen again and again that Messi could not deliver this world-class performance and then FC Barca also disappeared into oblivion.
The entire game concept of the club has been geared towards this one player for years and this is now turning out to be fatal. If Messi leaves the club in the summer, Barcelona have to reinvent themselves and develop a new game concept, then without a Messi in the team. Injury is also always a great risk. If Messi fails to appear on the pitch, the team is faced with a question mark. What to do if the star player can’t play but everything is geared towards him? This is a mistake that Barcelona cannot repeat in the future without Messi.
Reason 4: Rebuilding Barcelona was only half-hearted
And a third time we have to mention the 8-0 defeat against Bayern, because this was the starting signal for the new start at Barca. Or not? Of course, a lot of players have been sold. Far below their actual value, however. Barcelona could have received a lot more money for some of the players, but the players were sold in a real sell-off.
Sure: The account is packed … Despite the many departures, there weren’t many new players because the money simply wasn’t available to buy high-quality players. Instead, today at Barca you have to be content with players whose contracts with other clubs are running out. It’s time to invest in the next generation of Barca stars after Lionel Messi left. New talent has to be found and trained. This can take some time, but this is the case with every announced break.
Fans will probably not see Barcelona in a Champions League final for a few years. A fresh start with new and talented players is needed and soon.
Reason 5: Messi’s behavior damages the club’s image
Finally, in this article, we want to reiterate Messi’s behavior at the end of last year when he refused to train with the team. This has done a lot of damage to the image of the player and the club. Above all, their own fans, but also the world of football fans in general, reacted with incomprehension that a single player should be allowed to do something like that.
Basically, Messi is just an employee who has to fulfill his employment contract. He makes huge sums of money and then doesn’t show up for training for a while. This damage to his person will always remain, because this story will of course not be forgotten and thus Messi gave his legend a scratch that he could have done without.
Conclusion
Overall, there are a few reasons why FC Barcelona should part ways with Messi this summer. His contract is expiring anyway. However, there are more and more reports that Messi will probably stay with the club in the end, because hardly any other club in Europe can pay his mighty salary and the question naturally arises as to whether he is still worth that salary. how do you see it? Should Barca look to keep Messi in the summer or should they let him go?
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