Lionel Messi shared about Pep Guardiola, praising him as a genius who changed football, but also admitted that Pep’s influence has unintentionally caused many teams to “blindly imitate”.

In an interview with Simplemente Fútbol , Lionel Messi spoke deeply about Pep Guardiola, who coached him during his glorious period at Barcelona. According to Messi, his teacher was not only an excellent coach but also a person who “changed football” – both positively and negatively.

“Pep is from another world. He sees things that no one else sees. Pep has changed football,” Messi affirmed.

However, the Argentine legend also believes that Guardiola’s overwhelming influence has unintentionally created a wave of unrealistic imitation: “Everyone wants to copy us. In a way, Pep has harmed football, because everyone tries to play like our Barcelona.”

Messi stressed that this style of play only worked when there was a special team like Barca at that time, with the top midfield trio of Xavi – Busquets – Iniesta and absolute harmony between players and coach: “We were a special team… everything was perfect,” he said.

Messi also spoke publicly for the first time about not being able to return to Barcelona after leaving PSG. Although he always wanted to return to Camp Nou, it did not come true: “I had the intention of returning to Barcelona… but that cannot happen anymore,” he regretted.

Ultimately, Messi insisted that his decision to move to Inter Miami was down to family and psychological reasons after winning the World Cup: “I don’t want to go to any other European team. That’s very clear.”

With these shares, Messi not only expressed his admiration for Pep Guardiola, but also showed his sobriety when looking back at his influence on modern football.