New Barcelona manager, Ronald Koeman, revealed that there are plans to speak with unhappy captain Lionel Messi as he plans to get the club back on track of winning trophies again.
Koeman stated this at a press conference on Wednesday after being announced as the replacement for Quique Setien.
The former Netherland boss is however unsure if he will be able to convince” Lionel Messi to stay at the club.
The 57-year-old Koeman recently signed a two-year deal with the Catalan giant, whom he won the Champions League trophy with as a player. He has a good track record as a coach and maybe he’ll be the guy to take Barcelona football club back to glory.
Af of now, uncertainty still surrounds Messi’s future at the Nou Camp after they failed to win a trophy this past season for the first time since 2013, and also because Manchester City is interested in snatching Lionel Messi away from the La Liga side.
“He’s still got a contract and is still a Barcelona player. At this point, I need to speak to him because he is the captain.
“We need to work with him and speak with various players. We need to make some decisions but in Messi’s case I hope he stays with us.
“I don’t know if I have to convince Messi [to stay], whether it’s that or not. He is the best player in the world and the best player in the world you want in your team, you don’t want him playing against you.
“As a coach, I would love to work with Messi because he wins matches. If he’s at the ability and level he has always shown I’d be more than happy for him to stay,” Koeman said.
Ronald Koeman finally get his dream job
Koeman, who recently left his role as Netherlands boss has finally got his dream job. He has been wanting to coach the side, leaving the Orange with two years left on his contract, to take over at Camp Nou.
During his playing stint at Camp Nou between 1989 and 1995, the former Netherland international helped them to four league titles and the European Cup.
Barca finished second in La Liga last season, five points behind champions Real Madrid. Their failure of the side was the humiliating 8-2 defeat by Bayern Munich in their Champions League quarter-final last week, culminating in the dismissal of Setien on Monday.
After the sack of Eric Abidal, the club also announced Ramon Planes as the new technical director. He was the former assistant to the former defender.
“What we need to do is give a different image to what we gave against Bayern, that’s not the Barca we or the fans want to see.
“You have to be very happy to wear the Barca shirt. You have to show that with commitment, professionalism, with everything you have inside. If we do that, the image will be totally different from what it was last week,” he added.
Koeman says changes are neccessary
Speaking further, Koeman said the team is working very hard to build a strong team.
“But we’ll have to make changes because the image of the other day is not what we want. We’ll have to work hard to recover our prestige.
“It’s a big challenge and it won’t be easy because Barca always demands the best of you, which is the way it should be.
“Barca are still the biggest club in the world. Now we have to work hard to make sure Barca get back to where they should be. There is enough quality in the team to demand the best results and to win trophies.”
