Lionel Messi is likely to play his last season with Barcelona and the team captain is looking to see through the campaign as smoothly as possible. The Argentine stirred controversy in August by demanding a transfer request that Camp Nou rejected, and it appears that Messi is playing along with how things are unfolding.
In an interview with Sport, the superstar made clear his decision to leave Barcelona this summer was not to hurt the club where he found fame and fortune. The 33-year-old insisted his actions in the past are reflective of his love for the La Liga giants.
Messi said he is looking out for the Catalan club, suggesting the criticism he voiced out were for the Barcelona hierarchy to address the problems plaguing the organization. The skipper said he might have committed errors but he takes responsibility for those actions, which he added were for the club to implement changes.
"Let there be no doubts that anything I did was always with the club's best interests in mind," Goal reported Messi as saying.
He added that the disagreements should be left behind and it's best for Barcelona to be forward-looking and work together for the good of the club. While the problems have yet to be resolved, Messi said he chose to be optimistic, convinced that "the best is yet to come."
In recent days, however, Messi's issue with Barcelona executives showed no signs of simmering down. The latest to rile up the six-time Ballon d'Or winner was the way Luis Suarez was treated by the club.
The Uruguayan striker formalized his exit from Camp Nou last week after six seasons of winning titles and honor for the Catalans. Suarez teared up while saying goodbye to his teammates, and Messi said the treatment wasn't fit for a club legend.
When Ronald Koeman took over from Quique Setien in late October, the new boss informed Suarez that he is not part of the game plan for the season. Messi said the push out was uncalled for.
The Argentine took to social media to express his dismay and as Sky Sports noted in a report, Messi did not hold punches.
"You deserved a fitting farewell for the person that you are: one of the best players in the club's history, having achieved incredible things both individually and collectively. You didn't deserve to be pushed out the way they did, but the truth is nothing surprises me anymore," Messi was reported as saying on Instagram.
But for now, the Barca captain is following through on his commitment to play football and be the typical Messi on the pitch. Barcelona won their first home game in La Liga against Villareal and Messi, as usual, registered on the scoresheet.
