Ernesto Valverde explained he left Lionel Messi on the bench against Juventus to give him a rest as Barcelona cemented their place in the Champions League knockout rounds on Wednesday.
“Messi’s fine,” the coach said when asked if there was any other reason for the call. “It was a difficult decision. He feels a great deal of responsibility within the club and the team.
“But he has played a lot of games and eventually he had to have a to rest. We thought it would be a tight game and then it would open up. The idea was he could come on in the second half, with the game more open. That was the decision.”
“I’ve been facing him since 2010,” Allegri said. “It’s been 13 games and this is the first time that I have seen Messi sat on a bench.
“I worried a little when I saw he was coming on, but my lads did a good job keeping him quiet.”
“We came here with the intention of winning the game,” he said. “We played with a lot of personality because Juve press a lot here.
“There were lots of moments in the game which we dominated, but at the end, they could have won it with Dybala. Until then, we’d controlled the game and we’re happy to finish top, which is what we wanted.”
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