Lionel Messi said that Pep Guardiola who’s the current manager of Manchester City did a a lot of harm at football because he made it look so easy.
The Argentinian, who is currently at Paris Saint-Germain, was with Pep Guardiola at Barcelona, in the team that won the Champions League in 2009 and 2011 after defeating Manchester United in both finals.
Pep Guardiola left Barcelona in 2013 for Bayern Munich, leaving Lionel Messi in Barcelona and continuing to establish himself as one of the best coaches on Europe.
Since leaving Barcelona, Pep Guardiola has won various trophies with Bayern Munich and Manchester City.
To date, he has won four Premier League titles since arriving at Manchester City, and helped them reach the Champions League final for the first time in their history, where they lost 1-0 to Chelsea.
Lionel Messi expressed his respect for Pep Guardiola, saying that he made football look so easy, especially with the help of Tiki Taka, his style of football.
“Pep Guardiola did football a lot of harm because he made it look so easy and so simple that everyone wanted to copy him. Later, I found many ‘Guardiolas’ out there and you realise what we did and what that was,” said Lionel Messi to ESPN.
When Lionel Messi was playing under Pep Guardiola at Camp Nou, the Argentinian striker has won four consecutive Ballon d’Ors.
The record seven time Ballon d’Or winner has also revealed that Pep Guardiola is the best manager he has ever had.
He added: “Without a doubt [the best coach I’ve ever had]. He has something special, above all how he watched and prepared for matches and how he communicates, because of how he transmitted it to you.”
Manchester City are currently second in the Premier League, five points adrift of Arsenal heading into the 2022 FIFA World Cup break.