nevertalkalone

By Tom Johnston

The dejection on Lionel Messi’s face walking off the field spoke to more than the immediate, resulting anguish of the moment. Sure, he’d unfathomably failed to convert on a penalty kick that would have spared Barcelona its surprising Champions League departure last week. But then there were other impending disappointments at play in his club’s recent descent, not the least of which was the imminent departure of his beloved manager, Pep Guardiola.

Messi moves about a football pitch like a man having his every way. But that missed 12-yard shot against Chelsea was just as much a commentary on Leo’s mortality as was Pep’s decision to move on despite his finest player’s (and his teammates’) public pleas for him to stay. And as effortless as Messi is on the pitch, Pep is even smoother off of it; knowing his value as a premier manager, he would not be tied down to long contracts. Instead, he always made his decision essentially on a year-by-year basis. (more…)