Messi meets Luis Enrique again: Fierce confrontation and historic treble

Lionel Messi meets Luis Enrique in the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup round of 16, recalling the chaos at Barca 10 years ago, then the treble.

1. One of Leo Messi 's most memorable periods at Barcelona is something very few people witnessed.

Looking back, it can be said that the incident almost broke up the team and a few months later won Barca's last Champions League title to date.

Messi and Luis Enrique in the 2015 Champions League final. Photo: EFE

The incident happened on the morning of January 2, 2015, during a practice match at the Joan Gamper center. Messi was fouled, but coach Luis Enrique – who had just taken over at the time – did not call a penalty.

Leo was furious. The argument flared up so fiercely that several people had to intervene. Messi left practice and went straight to the locker room, leading to days of extreme tension.

After a decade, with no remnants of that historic “fire”, Luis Enrique and Messi meet again when PSG play Inter Miami in the 1/8 round of the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup (11pm, June 29).

They and many others who were present in that dramatic "play" - which could have turned into a tragedy - contributed to bringing Barca to the top.

In addition to Messi, there are four other players who started in the 2015 Champions League final in Berlin who are still playing for the American team: Luis Suarez, Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba are still playing; Javier Mascherano is the head coach.

2. Now, they only have compliments and respect for each other. But a decade ago, Messi and Luis Enrique were locked in a bitter dressing room power struggle that, when resolved, propelled them to the pinnacle of success.

At the start of that season, Messi was unhappy. Former president Bartomeu did not renew the contract of goalkeeper Pinto, his close friend; fired the manager of fixtures Txema Corbella and dropped Pepe Costa – Leo's confidant – from the team's travel list.

Luis Enrique has just taken office. In his first press conference, he declared: “I am the leader of my team.”

Midway through the season, Messi entered the 2014 Christmas holiday in Rosario in a foul mood and returned two days later than his teammates – right for that fateful training session.

Messi on the bench at Anoeta in January 2015. Photo: Sport

Two days later, Luis Enrique benched Messi against Real Sociedad at Anoeta, which Barca lost 0–1 due to an own goal by Alba.

That decision made Messi even angrier. He didn't even show up for the next training session. The conflict escalated. Enrique asked the club to discipline Messi.

Meanwhile, Iniesta and Busquets tried to reconcile, while Xavi went to Messi's house to persuade him.

Finally, Luis Enrique confronted the Argentine superstar directly. “If you listen to me, we will win,” he told Leo.

Since that meeting, Barca have played more direct football than usual, with the “MSN” trio (Messi, Suarez, Neymar) shining brightly.

They won the treble: La Liga, Copa del Rey and Champions League. Then, when Enrique and Messi left, Europe became a nightmare for Barcelona .

3. Messi rarely forgets someone who has made him angry. On the contrary, if someone helps him win, they will gain special respect.

In 2021, Barcelona were drawn against Man City, where Rodolfo Borrell – the only person in La Masia who never trusted Messi – was Guardiola's assistant.

“He said Messi was just a futsal player, dribbling too much and holding the ball for too long,” said former teammate Cristian Hernandez.

When Messi saw Borrell, he sarcastically said: “Stop everyone, a football genius has just appeared” . Nearly two decades have passed, but Messi still remembers.

Messi always respected Luis Enrique later. Photo: FCB

With Luis Enrique – the man who helped him win (and also won the 2015 Ballon d'Or; the only title in 6 years of voting, from 2013-2018) – Messi sees it very differently.

Along with Guardiola, he considers them the two best coaches he has ever coached. “Working with both of them consecutively helped me improve a lot in terms of tactics and football thinking ,” Messi said in 2020.

Luis Enrique has also overcome the stress. “There were moments when I had to deal with it as a coach, but now I can only say great things about Messi ,” he shared in 2019.

Luis Suarez, Messi's close friend, has a similar view: "Along with coach Oscar Tabarez (coached Uruguay from 2006 to 2021), he is one of the most important coaches in my career, because of what I learned."

Jordi Alba said: “For me, Enrique is the best. Not only as a coach, but also as an extremely talented team manager . ”

Luis Enrique quelled the chaos at Barca, then 10 years later erased Kylian Mbappe's image to help PSG win the Champions League for the first time in history.

Source: https://vietnamnet.vn/leo-messi-gap-luis-enrique-tu-vu-chay-lich-su-den-cu-an-3-2416289.html