Messi Explains Why He Dislikes Pep Guardiola’s Training Style

Argentine professional footballer, Lionel Messi, explained in a recent interview with JP Varsky on Clank Media that he found Pep Guardiola’s training approach at Barcelona to be overly perplexing, indicating a lack of preference.

The Argentine team captain expressed dissatisfaction with how Guardiola’s strategies were introduced to young players at Barcelona’s La Masia.

According to Messi, by imposing a rigid procedure, the youngsters’ innate talents were curtailed, as they were expected to adhere strictly to the prescribed technique.

During the discussion, Messi also shared that young children were instructed by Guardiola to always take two touches and aim for quicker gameplay.

Messi believes that rather than such an approach, the youth should focus on comprehending the game and improving their skills to create opportunities instead.

The former PSG star, who currently plays for Major League Soccer club Inter Miami said: “The Guardiola era was a bit confusing. … Many times, six and seven-year-old kids are already starting to be told that they have to play with two touches, to play fast, that they can’t have much of the ball.

“I think that at that age it has to be a bit like what happened to me: to teach them to better understand the game, to know how to move, to find spaces, to play quickly, but not to take away the spontaneity of each one.”