Argentine legend Diego Maradona has now lost his cool and has stated that he does not want to see Lionel Messi come back to the national team. The Barcelona talisman has not given a serious update on the future of his international career and the former World Cup winner feels that he should not come back and retire. There is a serious reason for his opinion and it seems that not too many will disagree to it.
The 31 year old superstar failed to make an impression at the World Cup in Russia, as his team crashed out of the tournament in the round of 16 stages. This did not go down well with the fans and Maradona himself, who was a spectator and a special guest at the tournament too was unhappy with the aftermath of their disastrous performances.
Argentina drew with Iceland, lost to Croatia and beat Nigeria, to go through to the knockout stages. Here, they were knocked out by the eventual winners of the tournament, France. Despite that, the Argentine legend feels that Messi needs to once again retire from the national side and here is the reason why!!
Eventually, Jorge Sampaoli was sacked on the day that France won the tournament, while on the other hand Messi has been left out of the squad chosen by interim boss Lionel Scaloni so far.
Though the Barca star refused to comment on his international future, Maradona, the current Dorados coach told Clarin on Sunday, “What would I tell Messi? To not come back any more. To retire.”
“The Under-15s lose and it is Messi’s fault, the fixture list in Argentina puts Racing against Boca and Messi is to blame. He is always to blame. Stop breaking my balls.”
“I would tell him: ‘don’t go anymore, man’. Let’s see if they can handle that. Let’s see if they are really big men.”
“I would have liked to see him tell us all to f**k off. Because he is not to blame for us not being world champions. Fine, we all placed our hopes in him, but when you go to the racetrack you hope your horse wins and he comes in eighth.”
He further added, “In Formula One Vettel has a great engine and Hamilton beats him. Right now the national team doesn’t do anything for me or for the people. We have lost that. The passion. It cannot play against Nicaragua or Malta, no, brother. We are throwing all the prestige we earned down the toilet.”
These are some strong comments made by Maradona, but they surely make sense because Messi has been at the epicentre of all the “blame games” that have been going on for quite some time now. He seems to be hurt and angry with what is going on and would not be pleased by the performances that they put in at the World Cup.
As he mentioned, it is right that the team looks at their skipper for inspiration, but blaming one player for their failures is not the right way to go about things. This is not the right way to do things and it is costing them year after year, as they lose more talent. He is under a lot of pressure too.
This needs to stop, if they wish to have him back and are hoping to win an international tournament sooner, rather than later. They will have a chance at the Copa tournament and can even try to win the next World Cup, if he continues to play for them till then.
All Messi needs is a little bit of inspiration, motivation and support to push the team to glory and a manager who understands what is best for the team and his own cause. Sampaoli was a bad choice to lead Argentina at the grand stage and it did cost the team, as they were really poor.
Some of the top players like Aguero, Dybala and Higuain were not used properly and Icardi was completely left out, which was shocking to see. Things did not end well for them and it was quite evident why!! The management will not want to repeat this once again and will want to bring in someone who can really make the team perform at the top level.
However, will Messi return to the team or not now, remains to be seen!! Though these comments by Maradona seem to be a dig at the board more than anything. Hopefully some of the legends of the game can inspire the special star to make his return and shine for his team.
When asked on who would be the right person to take over now, Maradona backed 1978 World Cup winner Cesar Luis Menotti to take the job. He is at present 79 years old and his experience could be the decisive factor in shaping the future of Argentine football, if he can do what his predecessors failed to.
The fans will surely wish to see that, as he is still one of the best in the world, if not the best!! Do you agree with Maradona’s comments? Roberto Martinez, son of Real Madrid star Roberto Juan Martinez had suggested something similar in his interview with Beyond The Posts.
He had stated that South American football has gone to the dogs and it seems that Maradona has just come out and fortified his claim too and there is a need for a major change now. Hopefully, things can improve and fast, otherwise Messi will be forced to retire without lifting a single international trophy. Something that the legendary player will surely not want, as he has always been compared to the great Maradona.
There is still time before the next major tournament and it is the right time for someone who is respected to take over and guide the team to a bright future. There needs to be action and fast.
