Zlatan Ibrahimovic says the Lionel Messi he witnessed in the course of the Club World Cup “isn’t the one he is aware of” and believes his Inter Miami team-mates are holding him again.
Miami reached the final 16 of the event within the United States earlier than a 4-0 thrashing by European champions Paris Saint-Germain.
Messi flitted out and in of the sport towards his former membership and was in the end powerless to forestall them from struggling a convincing defeat.
Ibrahimovic was completely satisfied to absolve Messi of any blame, nonetheless.
“It wasn’t Leo Messi who misplaced, it was Inter Miami,” the previous Swedish ahead instructed Foot Mercato of the defeat to PSG.
“Messi performs with statues, not team-mates. He’s surrounded by gamers who run as in the event that they had been carrying luggage of cement.”
‘He must be with higher gamers’
Speculation across the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner’s short-term future re-emerged yesterday when ESPN Argentina claimed Messi was eyeing a short-term mortgage transfer previous to subsequent summer time’s World Cup.
And Ibrahimovic, who starred in Major League Soccer for the Los Angeles Galaxy and alongside Messi at Barcelona, believes the 38-year-old would profit from taking part in in a greater group.
“This isn’t the Messi I do know,” he added. “If you set him in an actual group, he’d go all out. There are not any coaches, no stars, not even gamers who perceive tips on how to transfer with out the ball. When he performs with [Cristiano] Ronaldo, with [Kylian] Mbappé, with [Erling] Haaland, with Zlatan. Then you’ll be able to discuss.
“If he had been on an actual group, any nice group, you’d see the actual lion.
“Messi performs alone as a result of he loves the sport, as a result of he can nonetheless do what 99% of gamers can’t. But this isn’t the Messi I do know.”
