'Messi Was Awful!'
08 January, 2020
Following FC Barcelona’s disappointing draw in LaLiga this past weekend, six-time Ballon d’Or winner Lionel Messi was criticised for putting in an "awful" display.
The Argentine was fairly anonymous in the Catalan club’s goalless draw with Spanish giants Real Madrid last month, and came up with yet another ineffective showing against rivals Espanyol on Saturday night.
Despite one incredible solo run that ended with a superb pass to Luis Suarez, Messi was unable to impact the game in any way, with the score ending 2-2 at the RCDE Stadium.
Following the match, ESPN pundit Steve Nicol appeared surprised by the 32-year-old’s display, saying that everything the Blaugrana captain did went wrong.
"At 2-1, it looked like they were not playing well, with nobody particularly performing well, but it looked like they were going to win the game and get the three points, which, at the end of the day, is all that matters," he said on ESPN UK.
"Then (Frenkie) De Jong makes that awful mistake, and defensively they are nowhere close to being solid and they ended up dropping two points, but do you know what stuck out for me in this game?
"I though Messi was awful. Everything he did went wrong. Normally he’s so cool and composed and picks his passes, he always passes at the right time, at the right pace."
Messi has scored just one goal in his last four LaLiga matches, but is still the league’s top goalscorer so far this season with 13 strikes.
Source: www.soccerladuma.co.za