Former Real Madrid and Bayern Munich manager-in-waiting, Carlo Ancelotti has described Barcelona’s Lionel Messi as ‘unstoppable’. The Italian tactician underlined the futility of trying to create a defensive strategy to nullify Messi, as he was personally witness to the Argentine’s magic when in charge of Real Madrid.
Writing in his column for Chinese news outlet Sina Sports, Ancelotti initially revealed what he considers the best way to stop Messi, saying “Man-marking Messi is very complicated. The defender marking him would have to be at a very high level.”
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“The best way to stop him is by defending as a team, keeping the space between the lines tight and now allowing him to touch the ball. You need a lot of players in midfield to make that happen. That reduces Messi's options and he will see less of the ball, at least in dangerous positions.”
However, Ancelotti noted that all the tactics in the world will be tossed out the window if Barcelona’s talisman is at full fitness, as the Italian feels Messi’s brilliance at full tilt will negate any attempt to stop him, saying “But if Messi is at 100% physically, it is impossible to try to stop him, no matter who the coach is and what his strategy is.”
“His enormous talent makes it nearly impossible to anticipate what he will do, so there is no way to keep him quiet. We know that he likes to cut in from the wing and get the ball onto his left foot. But the problem is that Barcelona have more weapons than just Messi. If you focus on Messi, their other attackers can do the damage.”
Italians need divine help to stop Messi
It’s not just Ancelotti who is among those who consider Messi unstoppable. The former Real Madrid manager’s fellow countryman, Giorgio Chiellini, is considered one of the best defenders in the world. However, when asked how to stop Messi, the Juventus centre-back had a rather interesting reply:
“Stop Lionel Messi? Just make the sign of the cross.”
If the foremost defenders and managers schooled in the art of Italian catenaccio cannot stop Messi, the only thing left is his fitness, according to Ancelotti. However, it was recently revealed that Messi had played through pain for three games in the Club World Cup final, as the Argentine was suffering from kidney stones.
Ergo, Ancelotti might have to re-evaluate his opinion that Messi needs to be at full fitness to be unstoppable.
