It’s time for Barcelona to exploit Messi’s presence by signing players who are exceptionally well suited to the team’s approach.
It’s a strange headline, isn’t it? Odd in that you are likely asking: What do you mean? How does a team ‘exploit’ a player? And, for Barcelona, aren’t they already using Messi to full advantage? After all, they win the league year after year.
Yes, they are winning, but….
With Messi on their side, Barcelona (and possibly any team in the world) would be the best team in Europe over the last decade or so. But, in reality, they are not. They rank in the vicinity of the best, but Barca do not sit at the pinnacle.
It’s no secret that the ‘Barcelona of old’ banked on the La Masia Academy to obtain European success (e.g., Carles Puyol, Xaxi, Busquets, Iniesta, together with Messi). Times have changed, and things have evolved. Busquets and Messi are the sole La Masia graduates remaining with Guardiola’s squad.
One thing that hasn’t changed is that Messi remains Messi. Messi has been (and still is) the best footballer to have ever kicked a ball. Barcelona has been a European football powerhouse, too.
But if Messi had a better supporting cast, Barca would probably be the most formidable squad in all of Europe.
Messi!
I know. Some fans will say, “If Messi is that good, he would have single-handily taken Barcelona to the finals of this year’s Champions League.” The truth is that any player can push and push, and still (at times) hit a barricade.
Consider this. Neither Maradona nor Pele did as well for their respective teams as Messi has done for Barcelona. For instance, Messi has scored over thirty league goals per season over the last decade.
What might his team have accomplished if he had a better supporting cast?
That is not to say that Barcelona has been inactive in transfer markets. The team has been spending big. The problem is that they are spending money on players that are not best suited to the team’s style of play. Philipe Coutinho is an example. He has failed to justify his price tag.
Barca fans and team management need to accept the fact that Messi has only three or four years left of top football. It’s time for Barcelona to exploit that situation by signing players who are well suited to the team’s approach.
And Barcelona has something no other team has. What is it?
Most players sign because they are lured by money and/or a team’s rich history. Both apply to Barca, too. But Barca has something unique, a third card to throw on the table. It has Messi.
