Barcelona coach Ronald Koeman admitted Sunday he would “prefer to still have Lionel Messi” in his team.
Koeman saw his Messi-less side start their Liga campaign with a 4-2 win over Real Sociedad, 10 days after the Argentina star revealed he was ending his 20-year career at the club.
“Hey, if I had to choose, I would still prefer to have Leo Messi in my team,” said Koeman.
“We no longer have a player who can decide the fate of matches on his own—now it will be a collective effort.”
Messi, 34, has moved to Paris Saint-Germain, one of the few clubs who can afford to pay him.