Lionel Messi has had a rough few days following the first leg match against Real Madrid that saw the Argentine miss a penalty kick chance. Soon after, football pundits in the French media didn’t hesitate to go after the 34-year-old, criticizing him for his performance.
Nonetheless, some have come to his defense. Messi’s former Argentina national team teammate, Sergio Agüero, called out the French media for their remarks over the PSG forward’s performance. Another former Messi teammate also spoke out, Monaco midfielder Cesc Fabregas.
In an interview with Mundo Deportivo, Fabregas stated that judging the performance of Messi by the missed penalty kick “seems ridiculous.”
“He missed a penalty. So what? Judging him on that seems ridiculous to me. Football is much more than that. Courtois is a fantastic goalkeeper, and he has merit,” Fabregas said.
The Monaco midfielder explains that the Argentinian’s performance is far from catastrophic, noting several instances where he was dangerous against Real Madrid.
“Without being stellar, he had a good match,” Fabregas said. “He left Mbappé alone in the first half with a pass that none of the other 21 players on the pitch would be able to do. He got between the lines well; he gave Neymar another pass that could have been a goal.”
Messi can silence the French media in a few weeks when PSG travels to the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium on March 9th, a place that the 34-year-old has had his share of moments scoring significant goals.
