After a disappointing end to the weekend for Barcelona, club captain Lionel Messi said that the team has enough quality and should not depend on one man.
Barcelona were held to a 1-1 draw at Camp Nou by Athletic Bilbao as Messi spent the first half on the bench. Coach Ernesto Valverde’s decision to bench Messi and midfielder Sergio Busquets came as a shock to many and he was heavily criticised for it.
Valverde must have made the decision keeping in mind Barcelona’s tough UEFA Champions League group stage fixture against Tottenham Hotspur at Wembley.
Although Messi was not pleased with the result or his time off the pitch, he did say the team has a lot of quality in its ranks and should not depend on one person to do the job.
“We have the squad and the players to be a great team, to be a strong team and not depend on anyone,” the Barcelona captain said speaking to BeIn Sports after the game.
He also said that the results have been ‘shame’ but the team has to continue moving forward and make progress together. “We have quality players and should not depend on one player to win games.”
The Blaugranes will be making their first visit to Wembley since their UCL 2010/11 triumph against Manchester United at the same venue.
