PSG give Barcelona a bath in reality
Mbappe hit three as the European dream became a nightmare (again)
Lionel Messi, against his past and against his future. He played to bury the Champions League ghosts, a competition where Barca have failed since winning it in 2015. Messi played to wipe away the 8-2 humiliation by Bayern Munich in August. Messi played to break that sad and melancholy feeling European football now has for Barca fans. But he also played against his future, his hypothetical future outside of Barcelona. His possible future at PSG, the one club with enough money (apart from Manchester City) to sign him. He played to know if he could still find happiness at Camp Nou or if he needs to flee to Paris to find his lost hope. Messi played but the reality was that PSG easily outclassed the Catalans. Mbappe and Verratti were enough to put Koeman’s team on the ropes. And increase Messi’s doubts. Reminding himself of the horrible past and promising him a future in Paris that could be quite brilliant.
This Barcelona do what they can do. They are capable of winning seven consecutive La Liga games. But not of beating European giants, or Sevilla in the Copa del Rey. Koeman’s Barca are under construction, with all that means. They have enormous attacking talent, although nobody appeared apart from Messi, but huge defensive problems. They were decisive, in favour of Pochettino’s team. And that’s without Neymar and Di Maria. Rome, Liverpool, Lisbon and now Mbappe. The Champions League dream is a nightmare. La Liga is out of reach and the Copa del Rey is unlikely. It looks bad. A bath of reality.
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