LaLiga: ‘What Lionel Messi taught me’ – Diego Simeone

Atletico Madrid's manager, Diego Simeone, has shared insights on what he learned from Lionel Messi. Speaking ahead of Atletico's LaLiga match against Deportivo Alaves, Simeone expressed his gratitude to Messi for his contributions to Argentina and highlighted his influence on perseverance and competitive spirit. He said, "As an Argentine, I am grateful to him for everything he gave us, because he gave us so much joy, but above all for what he taught us, because he taught us to fight and, when things go badly, to keep insisting.

And that is Messi’s greatest value for Argentines, at least for me." When asked to choose between Diego Maradona and Messi for an upcoming league game, Simeone avoided a direct comparison, saying, "I am not going to get into the easy, demagogic game of choosing one of them. I was lucky enough to play with Maradona and I was not lucky enough to play with Messi.

The truth is that we Argentines are grateful to have had two extraordinary footballers, the best in history." Messi concluded his international career in a friendly match against Benin, netting one goal and providing two assists in a 3-0 victory for Argentina.