Lionel Messi has admitted that his teammates at Barcelona detested one Premier League club more than it did Real Madrid, who were fierce rivals in the El Clasico against Barcelona.
During his time with Les Cules, Messi was chosen as the player of the match in the 2011 Champions League final victory over Manchester United. He went on to win four Champions League titles.
Over the course of his career, he would frequently compete against Premier League opponents in Europe, despite having a variety of experiences when confronting them.
When Messi was only in his second year as a professional footballer, he was involved in a competition that left him with a sour taste in his mouth. This contest took place in 2005.
During Chelsea’s remarkable 4-2 victory over Frank Rijkaard’s Barcelona at Stamford Bridge, which allowed them to advance to the quarterfinal stages of the Champions League, Messi, who was only 17 years old at the time, was not a part of the squad.
Jose Mourinho, the manager of Chelsea, had expressed his disapproval of the referee Anders Frisk following the dismissal of Didier Drogba in the first leg of the match. As a consequence, the second leg was filled with a great deal of additional excitement.
In the round of sixteen, which took place a year later, the two teams were once again drawn to compete against one another. In addition, Messi made the decision to express his emotions.
He made the following statement: “These players despise Chelsea more than they despise Real Madrid.” I had no idea that I would ever be the one to say that to myself.
I also never imagined that I would witness something that was even more disappointing than the rivalry between Boca and River Plate or Brazil and Argentina. However, this is the case.
“We would rather play Arsenal, Manchester United or anyone else than be on the pitch with Chelsea.”
After falling behind in the second half of the match, Barcelona was able to pull off a remarkable comeback victory by a score of 2-1. The Argentine would get his revenge on the Blues by putting on a stellar performance at Stamford Bridge in the second leg of the match.
Rijkaard’s team would make it all the way to the championship game, where they would pull off yet another late comeback to defeat Arsenal with ten players.
Messi would ultimately be unable to participate in the final match in Paris due to a hamstring injury. It was ironic that the injury occurred during the victory at Stamford Bridge, which was caused by a terrible tackle from Asier del Horno. Messi has stated in the past that a decision he made after the match is one of the few things he regrets happening in his career.
In the year 2021, he expressed his regret to AS by saying, “I’m sorry I didn’t go out to celebrate with my buddies.”
For the entirety of my career, up until the time of my injury, I was a part of every single championship match. Sadly, I was dissatisfied.
“I am extremely sorry about that incident. We were victorious in that Champions League, and I was uncertain about what would happen next because it is a competition that is notoriously difficult to triumph in.
The good news for Messi is that he would go on to win the Champions League once more, but this time it would be three times overall.
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