Live Bar October 9, Messi was interviewed by "French Football", talking about leaving Barcelona, joining Paris, winning the Copa America, The Ballon d'Or and many other topics. The following is the full text of Messi's interview news:
Talk about winning the Copa America
French football: At the Maracanã Stadium on 11 July, Argentina beat Brazil 1-0 in the Copa America final. How do you feel when the final whistle sounds?
Messi: Seriously, I'm not sure what actually happened then... It's hard to describe how I felt in that moment. Unbelievably, I finally won the championship in the Argentine jersey. I didn't even realize that my teammates were running up to me and hugging me, but when I saw the photos afterwards and realized what we had achieved, I was even more touched.
French football: Wouldn't it be hard to imagine retiring without winning the championship for the Argentine national team?
Messi: Poof... Honestly, yes. To me, it's like a thorn. If I end my career without winning a championship for my country, I will always have a strange feeling in my heart. Having won everything I could at club level, I really wanted to add a beautiful chapter to my playing career by lifting this trophy. It was an honor I had missed before, and I knew I had to keep working hard, and I felt that this (winning the championship for the national team) would eventually come true and I couldn't give up.
French football: This time you coronation in the Copa America, but Maradona, who died on November 25 last year, can not witness...
Massey: I remember being at home when I learned of his death. Before the news spread, my father texted me: "Do you know about Diego? I didn't know what he meant, and then he told me that Maradona had just died. I was directly paralyzed because no one expected it. I know Maradona is not in good health and it's been a while, but I don't think he's going to die. It was terrible news, and then I saw the specific situation through the news. It's horrible.
French football: Marcelo Rofi (a sports psychologist who was part of the team of then Argentine coach Pequerman in the first year or two of Messi's first appearance for the Argentine national team) recently told us that this Copa America title has lifted your burden. Can you confirm his claims?
Messi: Of course, when you finally win the title after so many years of pursuit, it is a release. For everyone, I need this title, and I think all of us, Argentine and Argentine football, need it too. After so many years of scarce selection (argentina's last title dates back to the 1993 Copa America). We've been criticised for not winning the title and I think it's a bit unfair to our generation of players. And now, the fact of winning the championship has changed the way we originally thought about ourselves, and from now on, we can play in a calmer and more tranquil atmosphere.
Talk about leaving Barcelona
French football: At the farewell press conference, you laughed and wept, was this the craziest time of your life?
Messi: Well, I don't know if this is the craziest time, but my feelings are really contradictory. Of course, I'm thankful for everything I've experienced with the choices I've made, and I'm very happy, but it's also very strange for me because after that, after spending so many years there, I had to leave Barcelona and leave my home.
French football: When you came back to Barcelona after your holidays, everything didn't go as expected, or frankly, did you have some expectations or didn't anticipate them at all?
Messi: Frankly, not at all. After spending a few extra days off for me by Koeman, I returned to Barcelona to start preparing for the new season. My idea was to renew my contract immediately and then immediately resume training. I think everything has been solved and all that is missing is a signature.
However, when I returned to Barcelona, I was told that it was impossible to renew my contract and that I could not continue to stay. So I had to find a home for myself because Barca couldn't renew my contract. This completely disrupted my plans.
French football: You left Rosario at the age of 13 to start a new adventure in Europe. After 21 years with Barca, do you feel like you have to leave home again?
Messi: Of course, this is extremely difficult to accept. Thinking that we have to leave our house, the whole family will completely subvert the daily life that has become accustomed to it, and the children will have to change schools and accompany us to new places.
This big shift is the first time in my career that it has happened. I had a lot of thoughts, but I had no choice but to leave, and the reality was that we could only accept it. I also received other offers, but we quickly reached an agreement with Paris.
French football: What do you think of this shift in your mind?
Messi: Like I said at Barca's farewell party: after playing there for so many years, leaving Barca is a very painful thing for me. My family and I have already made up our minds that I will retire at Barca. So it was very difficult, but our whole family got through it together.
I started thinking about my career and Paris gave me an invitation to join them. We were encouraged by that and really wanted to go there. Paris has a fantastic squad and the team also aims to win a lot of titles, which is my goal for the next few years.
It's also a whole new life experience, a huge shift, and I'm trying to get used to it a little bit.
Talk about joining Paris
France football: After confirming that you will not stay at Barca, Paris immediately got in touch with you, was it the evening of August 5th?
Messi: After Barca officially announced that I could not stay in the team, I started thinking about how to continue my career and I needed to find a new club.
I feel very lucky that I was contacted by several clubs, one of which is Paris. I am full of gratitude for Paris because they were very good to me from the beginning. They showed that they really wanted to sign me and cared about me. I am very grateful for that and I am very happy to play for Paris now.
French football: How much time did you spend telling yourself that this was indeed the best option?
Messi: I did get other offers, but I also have to admit that we quickly reached an agreement with Paris. The negotiations began, and it wasn't easy, but everything was settled in a short time, almost overnight.
Given the circumstances at the time, it was a very difficult operation, but I was impressed by this transfer, the ambitions of the club and the squad, the whole team... All of these factors allowed me and Paris to reach an agreement quickly.
French football: Did Pochettino coach paris have an impact on your signing with Paris?
Messi: Yeah, it's good for me to be able to work with coaches from the same country. Although we never worked together, we met for a long time.
French football: a new challenge in Paris...
Messi: It's a fascinating challenge, like I said, I want to win more titles at the end of my career. I hope to achieve great things with Paris, which is our common goal.
French football: Paris have never won the Champions League. And you've won the title four times, the last time was six years ago. Do you think you have time to make the Champions League dream in Paris come true?
Messi: The Champions League is everyone's dream here. The club has been working towards this goal for several years and in recent years it has moved closer to it (2020 to the final and last season to the semi-finals). From my personal point of view, too, I would love to win the Champions League again, as I said when I was still in Barcelona. Because it's a good platform to play, it's hard to win, but I believe that these players in Paris have the strength to win the Champions League.
French football: Many now see Paris as one of the big favourites in the Champions League. Which other teams can stop Paris in the Champions League?
Messi: The focus is really on Paris, but there are other very strong teams, such as Chelsea, Manchester United, Manchester City, Real Madrid, they always perform well. Inter Milan, Bayern, they are also in the title race, are also great teams. Our team is very distinctive, but still needs to get to know each other better to form a team. Because to win the most important championship, everyone has to play as a team. We are still one step behind compared to the clubs with more collective experience. But I firmly believe that if we can be a real team, it will be difficult for others to beat us.
Talk about the new attack combination, Mbappe
French Football: What is the difference between MSN and MNM?
Messi: First of all, age, when we played with Neymar, we were still young. Now, the younger player is Mbappe.
In addition, Suarez and Mbappe are players with different playing styles, and Luis (Suarez) is a fully No. 9 player, center forward. He has been fantastic in the penalty area and has been able to score a lot of goals.
And Kylian Mbappe prefers to play with the ball, he's a very strong and very fast player, if you give Mbappe space, he will end you and Mbappe can score a lot of goals. Suarez and Mbappe are great players, but the two of them are different types.
French football: How is your relationship with Kylian Mbappe now?
Messi: Very good, very sincere, very good with players like him. Mbappesi is great, so we also communicate well off the pitch. I haven't been here for a long time at the moment, so it's too early to draw any conclusions. I believe that the tacit understanding between us will be very good.
Talk about the Golden Globes
French football: Do you think you are the most likely player to win the Ballon d'Or this year?
Messi: I don't think I'm the most likely to win an award, I don't like to talk about it. This summer I won the previously missed title honour (Copa America), and that was the highlight of the moment. If I can win another Golden Globe, I will be very happy and grateful. But I don't want to think about it all the time, and it's amazing to be the only player to have won the Ballon d'Or six times. It would be incredible to win a seventh Ballon d'Or.
French football: If you were asked to vote, who would you vote for?
Inside the squad, I'll pitch for 2 players, Neymar and Mbappe. Then there's Levan, who has been very good this year. And then there's Benzema, who played a really good season, but it's hard to say everything because collective honor is important for winning the Ballon d'Or, winning the championship is important.
Talk about new teammates, new leagues
French football: Wouldn't it feel strange to be in the same dressing room as a former Real Madrid player?
Messi: (laughs) I have to admit that I never thought I was going to go to a 'new dressing room', so let alone be on the same team as these players... We have a very strong squad now.
I am grateful to Paris Saint-Germain because they have been very good to me from the beginning. They showed that they really wanted to sign me and they took good care of me. I thank them for that because I'm so happy to be here to play now.
French football: What was your first impression of Ligue 1?
Messi: Compared to La Liga, Ligue 1 is a league with more physical confrontations. For me, the teams here are tough, the competition is fierce and the space on the pitch is small. Most of the players are very strong.
Talk about living in Paris
French Football: How did you come to Paris to settle down, how did you and your family?
Messi: We still live in hotels, and as time goes on, the kids start going to school, so getting to and from the hotel is not easy. We can't wait to move into a new home and start a new life. At the same time, we adapted very smoothly. Little by little, my wife and children began to leave their mark on themselves.
French football: Do you feel good about your new life?
Messi: Very good, my adaptation went very quickly. From the first day I came here, I felt as if I had been here for a long time, thanks to the good atmosphere of the players and training centers I knew, and now I really want to be able to play regularly.
French football: Do you have time to explore the city?
Messi: Honestly, there's very little time. As we were still staying in the hotel, moving was very complicated. I'm also a member of the national team and I'm going back to Argentina soon, with a tight schedule and a lot of games to play, so we haven't had time to explore the city yet. But once we're settled, it's time to start exploring.
French football: What did you miss most in your previous life?
Messi: In Barcelona, I have my own habits, after so many years, I know that place very well, I often go to the same place, and now I have to admit that I am a little lost. I had to get to know the city so that I could get around more easily and I was very excited about the future.
French football: Have you started speaking French with your family?
Messi: Kids say they go to school and then start learning in the classroom. They recognize words and then remember them immediately. Every now and then, they would greet me in French, but I hadn't started yet.
French football: Are the kids the ones who teach you French?
Messi: Yeah, they're better than me at that.