Koeman sends important message to Messi after Barcelona crash out of Champions League
- Ronald Koeman has revealed that Lionel Messi still has a bright future at the Camp Nou
- Barcelona were dumped out of the Champions League last 16 by Paris Saint-Germain
- Messi's future with La Blaugrana has continued to generate a lot of speculation
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Ronald Koeman has insisted that Lionel Messi's future is still with Barcelona despite crashing out of the Champions League, Mirror.
Paris Saint-Germain got the better of the Spanish club with a 5-2 aggregate scoreline at the last 16 stages of the competition.
And Koeman believes it is not the end of the road for Messi's career at the Camp Nou as the club are still in contention for La Liga and Copa del Rey trophies this season.
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After the game, the Dutch boss said the six-time Ballon d'Or winner could yet be convinced to stay.
"Leo has seen for quite some time that the team is improving thanks to all the changes we’ve made.
"Particularly, we have young players of great quality. We’ve got a great future ahead. Leo can’t have any doubts about what the future holds for this team."
Messi scored a stunning equalizer but missed a penalty as well as several scoring opportunities which would have given his side a chance of overturning the deficit.
Koeman was happy with his team's performance and believes his men did create several chances on goal but unlucky not to have scored.
He added:
"Okay, we are out, which is what counts in this sport. But we leave with good sensations.
"We had opportunities to make things very complicated for our rival. We were the superior team in the first half, taking big risks at the back with man-to-man marking.
"Really, we deserved more for that effort. It should at least have been 2-1 to us at half time. If we’d led at the break, the second half would have been a whole different affair."
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Meanwhile, Legit.ng had earlier reported that Barcelona's ouster at this season Champions League means both Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo will not be playing in the quarter-finals for the first time in 16 years.
Paris-Saint Germain got the better of La Blaugrana in a 5-2 scoreline over two legs while Juventus crashed out on a 4-4 away goal rule in their head-to-head clashes with FC Porto.
And this will be the first time Ronaldo and Messi will not be playing in the last four stages of the money-spinning competition since the 2004-05 season.
Akan Anwankwo is a sports editor with Legit.ng and has 7 years of field and office experience. He graduated from the University of Lagos in 2014 with a Bachelors degree in English and Literature Studies. Akan intends to educate, inform and make readers passionate about sports. Learn more about him on his Twitter handle: @ anwankwo_akan
Source: Legit.ng
