2023-11-04 09:37:00
This time, it’s definitely over. If you should never say never regarding a potential (although very improbable) victory for the Ballon d’Or next season, Lionel Messi on the other hand clearly confirmed, in the long interview he gave to France Football following his coronation on Monday, that we would not see him again on European football fields.
“Thank God, I was lucky enough to have an extraordinary career, I won everything I dreamed of in Europe, where I played for many years. Now that I’ve taken a step by coming here to the United States, I don’t think I’ll ever come back to play in Europe. Of course I will miss playing in the Champions League or playing in La Liga for the rest of my life, matches with a special flavor. But I enjoyed it as much as I could, so I have no frustration. »
“We largely dominated France”
An interview in which the eight-time winner of the Ballon d’Or looks back at length on the World Cup, from the inaugural defeat against Saudi Arabia (“a very hard moment”), through the electric match against the Countries -Bas and his verbal jousts with Wout Weghorst (“I admit that I didn’t like seeing myself like that”) until the coronation in the final against the Blues. “A thousand things went through my head… It’s hard to explain what you feel at that moment. (…) I said to myself: “It’s okay, I won everything. »
“We largely dominated France. (…) Even if we were ultimately crowned world champions, we would have deserved to be at the end of normal time. We really had confidence in ourselves. Deep down, I was convinced that we were going to be world champions, no matter what. »
He finally talks about his failed return to FC Barcelona this summer, the offers coming from “Barça, but also from other European clubs, Saudi Arabia… But we finally chose to come to Miami, a decision that we are happy to make have taken hold, because we feel good here (…) I was joined by friends, former teammates (Jordi Alba and Sergio Busquets). So, it’s all right ! »
PSG “now belongs to the past”
The last question, for the sake of form, still had appeal to Paris Saint-Germain, the club under whose colors he won his last two Ballons d’Or. “In Paris I spent two years during which many things happened, some good and some not so good. But I have already mentioned this period several times, it now belongs to the past and I only remember the positive things: with the team, we won two Championships in a row, while the previous season another team had been champion. Furthermore, I made very good friends in Paris and it was by playing there that I managed to become world champion. »
He also mentioned his former teammate Kylian Mbappé: “He had a very good season, including a spectacular World Cup, he almost spoiled the final for us with his goals. It seems to me – as I have already said several times – that he is one of the footballers who can win the award every year, because he is clearly one of the very best players in the world.
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