iNsTaNtLy bEtTeR

You guys are having the wrong debate here. With or without Messi, Barça has absolutely no excuse for getting knocked out in the CL group stage for the second year in a row, especially after investing A LOT this summer.

You can't tie this failure to Barça not having Messi because all the other teams not named PSG are also competing without Messi and 15 of them have no problem advancing to the round of 16.

This is entirely on Barça and Xavi. They had enough firepower to advance and yet they failed.

Even if Messi had stayed, sooner or later, there would come a day where both parties would have to part ways anyway. A club of Barça's magnitude can't ride on Messi's back forever. They have to build a team strong enough to compete on all fronts and not be dependent on just one player.

In my opinion, Messi's departure was the best thing that could ever happen to Barça because it forced them to get off their asses and plan for a future without him (which they would be forced to anyway if they didn't). Of course rebuilding can take time and everything, but they absolutely have no excuse not to advance this year, with or without Messi, with or without a rebuild, especially with all the money that they poured into the team this summer.

But this is what happens when you have a cheat code for a player who is so good he can hide all of the team's weaknesses and the board's fuck-ups and make you look way better than you really are. When he leaves, everything is laid bare and Barça can't blame nobody but themselves for this.

I repeat, Messi or no Messi, Barça has no excuse not to advance this year to the round of 16.

At this stage I feel bad for him, and bad for the team

Ffs Cas, couldnt have said it better, all my thought in ur post there XD

The Demon of Carthage wrote:You guys are having the wrong debate here. With or without Messi, Barça has absolutely no excuse for getting knocked out in the CL group stage for the second year in a row, especially after investing A LOT this summer.

You can't tie this failure to Barça not having Messi because all the other teams not named PSG are also competing without Messi and 15 of them have no problem advancing to the round of 16.

This is entirely on Barça and Xavi. They had enough firepower to advance and yet they failed.

Even if Messi had stayed, sooner or later, there would come a day where both parties would have to part ways anyway. A club of Barça's magnitude can't ride on Messi's back forever. They have to build a team strong enough to compete on all fronts and not be dependent on just one player.

In my opinion, Messi's departure was the best thing that could ever happen to Barça because it forced them to get off their asses and plan for a future without him (which they would be forced to anyway if they didn't). Of course rebuilding can take time and everything, but they absolutely have no excuse not to advance this year, with or without Messi, with or without a rebuild, especially with all the money that they poured into the team this summer.

But this is what happens when you have a cheat code for a player who is so good he can hide all of the team's weaknesses and the board's fuck-ups and make you look way better than you really are. When he leaves, everything is laid bare and Barça can't blame nobody but themselves for this.

I repeat, Messi or no Messi, Barça has no excuse not to advance this year to the round of 16.

I think we all know what the issues are and put the blame on the board and coach.

However people are arguing here with Alex, who for years peddle the line how Messi was the problem, he was cancer for the team, he held the team back etc. Only for Messi to leave and we turn from a CL level team to Europa League. If anything this should put more respect on Messi name as he was carrying this crap for years, carried us to a CL semi-final in 2019 and won the league.

He was never the issue at the end.