During the seven-time Ballon d’Or winner’s remarkable period at the Blaugrana, Barcelona players were required to follow a ‘Lionel Messi’ rule. Messi is poised to reject a contract extension. La Pulga could leave Paris Saint-Germain at the end of the season. Hence his father Jorge apparently informing the club of his decision. It comes after the World Cup winner was suspended for two weeks for an unlawful ambassadorial travel to Saudi Arabia only hours after losing 3-1 at home to Lorient.
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Ex Barcelona player Todibo explains ‘Lionel Messi rule’
The 35-year-old is now likely to leave the Parc des Princes. La Pulga’s his next destination appears to be a return to Barcelona. He scored an incredible 672 goals in 778 games for Barca before leaving on a free transfer in 2021. It’s no secret that Barcelona has been looking at ways to bring Messi back home.
Interestingly it’s now been revealed that his former colleagues have to follow one precise instruction when training against him. The Argentine superstar was so important to Barcelona that they didn’t want to risk any potential damage. So much so that players fought not to attack him too hard in practise sessions.
Jean-Claire Todibo, who made five appearances for the Catalan giants FC Barcelona, was one of those who had to comply with the directive. According to Marca:-
“We all knew he couldn’t get injured“, Todibo told German newspaper Bild during his loan stay at Schalke.
“Messi was carefully defended in training. I learnt a lot watching Messi, and I even tackled him a few times without hurting him.”
Messi is frequently observed walking while not in possession before springing into action and performing feats of magic when the ball is at his feet. Manager Christophe Galtier asked PSG players to double their workload in order to bring out the best in him. Thereby eliminating him from any defensive duties.
“I ask the team to play for Leo and to work for him”, Galtier said during a press conference, according to Get French Football News.
“He should be excused from certain tasks. His teammates must work harder to recover and create movement so that he can find passes, which are so rare in today’s game, in such tight places.”
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