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FC Barcelona captain Lionel Messi made no secret of his frustrations after his side lost to Osasuna, 2-1, in the La Liga at their home turf in Camp Nou.
Clearly adding to the dismal feeling for Messi is that toughest rival Real Madrid clinched the La Liga title via a 2-1 win over Villareal on the same night.
Messi gave Real Madrid his congratulations but wasn't able to help but say that although the 34-time La Liga champions did their job, Barca's lapses have also served them well.
Indeed, Barca was leading Real by two points before the La Liga games were suspended due to the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic.
According to the Mirror, the Argentine football star said after the game that they were not expecting what happened and that they had not wanted to end La Liga playing like how they did.
But Messi said that how they played their last La Liga game was a reflection of how the team is doing so far for 2020.
Lionel Messi went on to say that the team has become weak and has lost its shape. He said that Osasuna had defeated them because they lacked intensity and even conceded easy goals.
The six-time Ballon d'Or winner added that if they continue playing like they did, their Champions League chances will be slim as they will certainly lose to Napoli.
Barca will be facing Napoli in the second leg tie in the last 16 of the Champions League with the aggregate score at 1-1. The match will be played next month in Lisbon, which gives Barca time to evaluate and reflect on what they really want to happen with the team.
According to Messi, they are Barca; thus, they have to win everything. They have to be critical of themselves, especially the players.
With the Napoli game just around the corner, Messi said that a lot of things have to change.
The team’s dismal performance came at the heels of a report that Lionel Messi had refused to extend his contract with the Catalan club with his current contract ending in June 2021.
Image credit courtesy of Save the Dream/Flickr
