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Former Barcelona assistant manager Eder Sarabia has commented on Lionel Messi's controversial decision to hand in a transfer request ahead of the 2020-21 season.
Messi, 34, is the club's greatest player, having made 777 appearances, scoring 672 goals and contributing 302 assists. He won four Champions League and ten La Liga titles during his time at the Camp Nou before he left the club last summer on a free transfer.
Messi joined Ligue 1 giants Paris Saint-Germain but hasn't quite replicated his Blaugrana exploits, scoring only 11 times across competitions. However, before that move came to fruition, the forward had handed a transfer request in 2020.
Sarabia was an assistant to Quique Setien during the 2020 season and had reported issues with many veteran Barcelona players, including Messi. However he has heaped praise on the Argentinian forward telling RAC1 (via Football Espana):
“He is the best player in history. Not just the best player performing, also understanding it.”
Messi made the shock decision to hand in a transfer request in 2020 following Barcelona's embarrassing 8-2 loss to Bayern Munich in the UEFA Champions League quarterfinals.
Defending the 34-year-old for doing so, Sarabia said:
“If he, with everything that he gave that club, could see that the entity maybe wasn't up to the task, it might have generated an imbalance.”
The former Blaugrana assistant believes Messi has worn the burden for the problems inside the club, saying:
“He had that worry, the disappointment … with things that seemed as if they were going to be one way and then were not. Surely for that reason he made the decision to leave the club (during the transfer request incident). It impacted on his happiness, and that could have produced the break. It definitely wasn't what Barca nor he wished for.”
Can Lionel Messi hit the same heights with Paris Saint-Germain that saw him become a Barcelona legend?
It has been a difficult debut season at the Parc des Princes for Lionel Messi following his blockbuster move last summer.
He has been criticised for a number of lacklustre performances and has failed to show his legendary prowess in Paris. He was unceremoniously booed by a section of PSG fans following the teams' defeat against Real Madrid in the UEFA Champions League Round of 16.
The 34-year-old ended the season as a Ligue 1 champion, making 34 appearances, scoring 11 goals and contributing 14 assists. PSG fans will hope the seven-time Ballon d'Or winner hits greater heights next season and inspire them to the elusive UEFA Champions League.
