"Because we have fun" - Argentina star Rodrigo De Paul breaks silence on being labeled Lionel Messi's henchman

Argentina star Rodrigo De Paul has built a reputation for protecting Lionel Messi on the pitch. He is always there to keep Messi away from any trouble.

Memes about Messi and De Paul have taken over social and digital media. He is often referred to as the Argentina captain's bodyguard. The Atletico Madrid midfielder has now reacted to the claims, saying (via Express):

“I care a lot about Leo, and I know he cares a lot about me. Off the pitch we are close because we have fun, we are friends. And I have a good time with my friends.”

De Paul is a midfield workhorse for La Albiceleste. His engine is crucial for the team to keep ticking. The former Udinese midfielder covered 32.4 miles of ground during the group stages of the tournament, which is almost twice Messi's tally of 16.7 miles.

An industrious player like De Paul helps Lionel Messi reduce his defensive workload and focus more on attacking.

This approach has certainly helped them, as Argentina's talismanic captain has already scored five goals in the FIFA World Cup and is the joint top scorer of the tournament along with Kylian Mbappe. Messi has also bagged three assists to his name.

De Paul commented about the approach, saying:

“A lot of the time, the analysis that I do while I’m playing leads me to try to make him run less. To make less wear and tear and to have more space to play with - these are things that cross my mind during the match."

---

France captain Hugo Lloris refused to focus only on Lionel Messi ahead of FIFA World Cup final against Argentina

Argentina Training Session - FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022

The majority of France's work in the 2022 FIFA World Cup final against Argentina will be to keep Lionel Messi at bay. However, Hugo Lloris refused to focus solely on the Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) forward as he believes the occasion is off too high a magnitude to do so.

Lloris said ahead of the showpiece clash at the Lusail Stadium (via India Today):

"The event is too important to focus on one player. It's a final between two great nations, When you face this kind of player (Messi), you have to pay attention to him, but this game is not just about him."