Barcelona FC could be the reigning champion of Spanish league La Liga, but on European front; they were humility beaten by Bayern Munich in the semifinal last year. In fact, they were crushed by 7-0 in aggregate by the German club and those unforgettable memories are still alive in the mind of every Barca player, especially Messi, who was the part of their last season debacle in the European league. Now, the Argentinian is gearing up for a revenge of what they conceived last year right from their first match of the season which is against Ajax on Wednesday. Barcelona has refined its strategies to triumph UEFA trophy this year and their roadmap includes the likes of Messi and Neymar in important roles. La Liga champions are firmly determined to polish their record by showing best of their strength in front of European fans. However, Messi is not taking it as an excuse to their shoddy performance last year; hence he wants some notable changes to their show this season.
He talked about their plans and what everyone should expect from them via UEFA official web portal, where he said, “We always wanted to achieve more. Winning the league was very important because of what it signified — winning it back after Real Madrid had won it last year. There’s also a bitter taste after what happened in the semi-final against Bayern Munich, where there was a big gap between the two teams — we didn’t go into it in our best shape.
“But that’s the past and we have to look forward. What happened against Bayern? They were just the better team in all respects, physically and in football terms too. They just played a great first leg, and had the advantage over the tie, so they were really superior to us.”
Messi is also positive with new coach Gerardo Martino and takes their group filled with tough opponents, however, they are not taking any team lightly, yet they are confident to suppress group stage quite easily. He added, “It’s a difficult group, but we knew that would be the case. It’s very difficult to win the Champions League — it’s already hard from the start,” he added. “I think the groups are very even, very balanced, so there will be some great games. We hope to play at our best level to be able to qualify.
“There are top class, historic teams in our group — big names. Teams that we’ve faced before, so we know them a bit. Maybe not so with Ajax, but we’ve watched them. It’s an exciting group.”