Lionel Messi Shows He's Put Summer from Hell Behind Him Against Sampdoria
One could forgive Lionel Messi for feeling down, having had a thoroughly horrible summer. At least as far as summers go wrong when you're a multi-millionaire footballing god known as "D10S."
From taking a knee in the back that threatened his Copa America Centenario participation, to driving Argentina to the final of that competition only to see them lose on penalties to Chile for the second year running, as well as being hit with a 21-month jail term for tax fraud—albeit one he will not serve—the last few weeks have been far from delightful for Messi.
The bleach blond hair has given him a new look, and that may well be part of his personal attempt to put the misery he suffered behind him, but nothing will do that as well as burning brightly on the pitch will.
And boy did he burn brightly against Sampdoria. In the Joan Gamper Trophy, Barcelona's traditional curtain raiser at Camp Nou, Messi did what Messi does best: He inspired the team and gave over 70,000 fans present plenty to smile about as many of them saw their heroes in the flesh for the first time in a few months, and some just for the first time. The Gamper always attracts a lot of tourists.
Barcelona ran out 3-2 winners in what was a thoroughly entertaining affair, with Messi notching twice after setting up Luis Suarez for the first goal.
The squad was presented to supporters before the game, but while the real action got under way, many thousands of miles away in Brazil, Argentina's Rio Olympic Games football team was busy being knocked out in the group stage.
Messi was never likely to go to Rio because he was needed at the Copa America, and although it's predominantly an under-23 side, there was something interesting about the Albiceleste crashing out of a tournament while the country’s star player was letting loose for his club.
Edgardo Bauza, the Argentina manager, was at Camp Nou to watch this game after flying to Catalonia to meet Messi, in the hope the No. 10 would reverse his decision to retire from the national team—a decision the 29-year-old made within the hour after losing the Copa America final.
Being coach of the country and not having Messi would be like trying to run a pizza restaurant but not being allowed to use the oven. And yet the hounding he has suffered from Argentina fans seems to have influenced his decision to quit, as well as the pain of losing four major finals—three in the last three years.
Messi, as good as he has been—and don't let his detractors influence you, he has been superb for Argentina—has never been able to shake the huge weight he has to carry when playing for his country, unable to look as free and blissful as he does in Blaugrana.
Evidence of that came thick and fast at Camp Nou on Wednesday night, in the final friendly before Barcelona's season gets started for real, against Sevilla in the first leg of the Spanish Super Cup final on Sunday night.
Just after a quarter of an hour into the game, Andres Iniesta lofted a delightful ball into the area, which Messi decided to overhead kick back into Suarez's path, with the Uruguayan heading home to open the scoring.
It was a piece of gorgeous improvisation from Messi, who part-saw and part-sensed Suarez arriving and executed his acrobatic pass with a lightness of touch that made the Uruguayan converting the ball a formality, or more of one than it usually is.
Messi soon scored the second himself, controlling the ball well after Ivan Rakitic threaded it through, rounding the goalkeeper and rolling home.
Then he had another, tucking home a free-kick far too easily, although things he does often appear simple until someone else tries to do it.
Messi played around three-quarters of the game before being substituted for Munir El Haddadi, and barring any injury-related twists, we will see him line up for Barcelona again on Sunday night in Seville.
His retirement from international duty forces us to think about Messi’s longevity as a player. At 29, he still has many years ahead of him at Barcelona, but nobody knows how many more games that is. Bad luck can strike at any time.
If Bauza is unable to persuade him to return then Barcelona will feel the benefit, with fewer long-haul trips to South America and less risk of injury, but in a football sense, everybody loses. The best player in the world needs to be playing international football, for the good of the game.
The alternative to that argument is that we will see a hyper-concentrated Messi in Spain, freed from some of the most tiring parts of the game, there’s a chance his performances for Barcelona will rise to a new level. It is impossible to project just how good Messi can be. He’s a player who can reinvent his position and take to new ideas like a duck to water.
This victory over Sampdoria, although still leaving question marks over the defence, has nudged Barcelona back in the right direction after their 4-0 defeat by Liverpool at Wembley.
Lucas Digne continues to impress at left-back in Jordi Alba’s absence, while Arda Turan was improved playing as a winger than his recent performances in midfield. He was one of three Barcelona players to hit the woodwork, with Luis and Denis Suarez also striking the frame of the goal.
Players like Iniesta, Rakitic, Gerard Pique and Sergio Busquets continued to add minutes after starting pre-season late, thanks to their participation in the European Championship. The latter was much improved from a shaky second-half performance against Leicester City and a downright dismal one in the Liverpool clash.
Meanwhile, Samuel Umtiti and Andre Gomes made their debuts and showed that Barcelona now have true depth in the squad. So much so that talented youngster Sergi Samper looks set to be sent out on loan, with Sport reporting that the club are discussing a deal with Valencia for him.
Even though Los Che, a few hours down Spain’s east coast, are a bit of a mess at the moment, getting a year’s worth of top-flight experience would be the best thing for the midfielder. Certainly better than spending another year in Catalonia if he isn’t going to get a regular game—which he isn’t.
After the game Luis Enrique said, per Sport: "I see the team with an enormous ambition, we still have things to rectify, but I think that we begin the season as the team to beat. I am very happy with how the season looks, we shall see if we are able to handle it well."
All in all, there was a lot of good news for the coach ahead of the Spanish Super Cup, the official start to the season.
And yet, none of it is more important or more pleasing than seeing Messi hit his goalscoring stride and have fun on the pitch once again.
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