Ex-Barcelona midfielder, Yaya Toure has come out to share how he and his teammates used to protect a young Lionel Messi. He recently had his say while speaking to the press, and fans have been reacting.
According to him, everyone protected the young Argentine because he was obviously talented, and whenever opponents pressed Barcelona high during matches, they would just get the ball over to Messi up front.
Toure added that Ronaldinho used to turn his teammates into a laughing stock by nutmegging everybody in training.
His words, “Everyone protected him because we knew he was a talented player and we recognized how good he was. That was very beneficial for the club. We were happy when opponents pressed us high. Because we simply, without thinking, would try to pass the ball to him immediately.
In my early days with Barcelona during training, Ronaldinho seemed ordinary. But one day he came to me and said, ‘Be careful, Yaya, if you get close to me, I’ll make you a laughing stock.’ I thought he was just joking, but every time I got near him, he’d nutmeg me.”
WOW.
Futbol Club Barcelona is a professional football club based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, that competes in La Liga, the top flight of Spanish football.
Founded in 1899 by a group of Swiss, Catalan, German, and English footballers led by Joan Gamper, the club has become a symbol of Catalan culture and Catalanism, hence the motto “Més que un club” (“More than a club”). Unlike many other football clubs, the supporters own and operate Barcelona. It is the third-most valuable sports team in the world, worth $5.51 billion, and the world’s fourth richest football club in terms of revenue, with an annual turnover of €582.1 million.
The official Barcelona anthem is the “Cant del Barça”, written by Jaume Picas and Josep Maria Espinàs. Barcelona traditionally play in dark shades of blue and garnet stripes, hence nicknamed Blaugrana.
In March 2021, Lionel Messi overtook Xavi’s record of 767 games played for the club, and presently has made 778 official appearances in all competitions, while also holding the record for the most appearances in La Liga matches for Barcelona, with 520.
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