By Aiwu Esele
Koeman, right, displaying new-look Team Jersey. BBC Photo
The new Barcelona head coach, Ronald Koeman has said he needed to speak with unhappy Lionel Messi amid reports of impending exit of the world’s best footballer from the club this season.
Koeman, 57, who has just signed a two-year contract with Barcelona said the six-time world footballer of the year is a player any coach would want to be in his club, and not to wish to play against.
He said; ‘’At this point I need to speak to him because he is the captain’, said Koeman, a old hand at the Spanish club between 1989 and 1995 when they won four league titles at European Cup.
‘’I don’t know if I have to convince Messi to stay, he is the best player in the world you want in your team, you don’t want him playing against you.’’
‘’As a coach I would love to work with Messi because he wins matches. If he is at the ability and level he has always shown I’d more than happy for him to stay.’’
‘’What we need to do is give a different image to what we gave against Bayern, that’s not the Barca we or fans want to see.’’
“You have to be very happy to wear the Barca shirt. You have to show that with commitment, professionalism, with every thing you have inside. If we do that the image will be totally different to what it was last week.’’
‘’Barca are still the biggest club in the world. Now we have to work hard to make sure Barca get back to where they should be. There is enough quality in the team to demand the best results and to win trophies.’’
