Paris: Paris Saint-Germain coach Mauricio Pochettino defended Lionel Messi after the French striker missed a penalty kick against Real Madrid in the first leg of the Champions League round of 16. Although Kylian Mbappe scored the winning goal for the Paris team to reach the quarter-finals, Messi’s performance in the match met with many criticisms
Since he first participated in the tournament in the 2005-2004 season, no player has missed more penalties than Messi in the Champions League, where the Argentine star failed to score 5 kicks.
Before facing Nantes in the French league next Saturday, Pochettino defended his compatriot strongly.
The former Tottenham coach said: “Messi is the best player in the world, a player like him and with that experience, means a lot to football.”
He added: “If you want to explain to someone about the identity of football, it is Lionel Messi.”
The Argentine coach explained, “His wasting that blow will not affect his confidence at all, if someone believes in that, he does not understand this sport.”
He continued, “I am happy with his performance, he played well against Real Madrid, during which he succeeded in linking the lines together on the field.”
The Brazilian star Neymar joined the former Barcelona captain, Messi, in the match against Real Madrid, while the Brazilian player succeeded in providing a decisive pass to his colleague Mbappe with the butt of the foot, so that the latter scored the winning goal in the deadly time.
Pochettino confirmed that the Brazilian star is in a suitable position to participate in his first match as a starter since he injured his ankle against Saint-Etienne last November.
“Nima may play against Nantes,” the Argentine coach said, today, Friday.
He added, “He did well in training, was in a state of great focus at every stage of his recovery, and showed his dedication and his attempts to return to his best levels and help the team.”
He continued, “We hope that he has been able to overcome these problems now, and play several competitive matches, to reach his best level.”
Neymar has suffered many injuries since joining Paris Saint-Germain from Barcelona in 2017, as he has never succeeded in participating as a base in more than 20 games per season with the team so far, and despite that, he scored 59 goals and made 34 goals for his colleagues in 80 A match he participated in with the French capital team.