Lionel Messi has shown that, even at 38, he is still a force to be reckoned with in soccer. However, he has also made clear his dissatisfaction with some decisions or situations that have not been to his liking.
During his time at Paris Saint-Germain, his coach at the time, Mauricio Pochettino, decided to take him off the field in a Ligue 1 match, but Messi’s reaction was such that it still amazes the coach today.
When Messi questioned Pochettino
The Argentine coach, now on the bench for the United States national team, coached PSG’s Messi, Neymar Junior, and Kylian Mbappé from January 2021 to July 2022.
Managing one of the most powerful attacking trios in soccer was not a difficult task for Mauricio. In fact, he said that his challenge was to create “an atmosphere of normality even in exceptional circumstances.” However, he did have to make decisions that could affect the ‘MNM’ and “millions of people” because of the reach each of them had. And after four years, he still remembers one in particular.
In a Ligue 1 match against Lille, Pochettino decided that Lionel should leave the field in the 75th minute of the game with the score tied at 1-1. This not only caught the attention of PSG and soccer fans in general, but also Messi himself, who disagreed and made no secret of it.
Once his teammate Achraf Hakimi had entered the field to replace him, Leo approached his coach, who has now revealed what he said to him. In an interview with High Performance, Pochettino revealed that the Argentine star was “disappointed” and confronted him:
“He said to me, ‘You have to ask me‘. But I had to prioritize the health of his knee,” he explained. “After that game, he came back, scored a goal against Manchester City, and in the locker room, he just hugged me,” Pochettino revealed.
However, despite this exchange with Lionel, which had a happy ending, the coach assured that “there were never any problems with discipline or respect with them” and that they were always “professional.”
Pochettino managed 84 games (56 wins, 13 draws, and 15 losses) and won Ligue 1, the French Cup, and the French Super Cup, but the defeat to Real Madrid in the round of 16 of the 21/22 Champions League put an end to his career at the club.
Lionel, meanwhile, ended his contract with the French club on June 30, 2023, after two seasons in Paris. He then decided to embark on a new adventure and signed for David Beckham’s Inter Miami. He was presented by the club in July 2023. There, he won the 2023 Leagues Cup, the 2024 MLS Supporters’ Shield, and this year he won the MLS Cup Eastern Conference title and the MLS Cup.
Now, he is preparing to defend his titles and kick off a new MLS season on February 21 against Los Angeles FC at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.
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