'Messi is on another planet' - What it's like marking a 'genius'

Paris Saint-Germain summer signing Lionel Messi has left a litany of dispirited defenders in his wake as he's showcased his legendary footballing prowess around Europe and South America over the course of his remarkable career.

One of the men he's tormented is Maxime Gonalons, the 32-year-old Granada midfielder who has also played for Lyon and Roma, and thus faced the former Barcelona forward on many occasions.

In an exclusive interview with Goal, Gonalons has recalled his experiences of going up against the living legend that is Messi.

Goal: As a defensive midfielder, Messi is a player who often comes to your area of the pitch. Do you advise his future opponents in Ligue 1 to watch videos to prepare well for a match against him?

Maxime Gonalons: "We must start by saying that this is a player who is unique. I had the chance to play in some big European matches and, therefore, I had to face the best players. But he is on another planet. It's always difficult to compare with other players who have marked their time but he is... pfff, he is out of any category!

"As for the video, he's a player that we see all the time on TV, so we all know him very well, even if very few players manage to stop him. Can we really talk about stopping him? The reality is that it is very, very complicated, but you have to annoy him as much as possible."

Goal: What can you do to annoy him and prevent him from being dangerous?

MG: "When he makes a pass and he starts to move behind, you have to try to block him, to put your arm at a distance to prevent him from moving, because that's where he's very very strong. When he gives a pass and goes forward, he has an impressive change of pace and direction. So, to get in his way, you have to try to put your body in opposition and not make a big mistake."

Goal: In the middle, what were you trying to do to defend against him?

MG: "When you play against him, you have to try to prevent him from getting on his left foot, because his right foot, he uses it much less. And above all, try not to throw yourself at him, so that he doesn't make that pass that makes the difference almost every time.

"Last year during a Copa del Rey match, we were leading 2-0 in the 88th minute and then he creates two goals to make it 2-2. If you look at the two goals, they are the same. He's on his left foot, goes inside and tees the ball up for a team-mate.

"If you have this little lapse in concentration, or if you don't pay attention to the little details, he makes the difference quickly. You have to try to prevent him from getting on his left foot, because that's where he's the most dangerous. Of course, he is quite capable of going on his right foot too..."

Goal: Does he have any habits that you've noticed in his game?

MG: "What is very tough with him is that he is very smart. I have watched him on the field, from the bench and in the stands and, sometimes, you notice that he's not running a lot. But he is intelligent and has a quick analysis of the situations in front of him. He always puts himself in the areas that are difficult for the opponent and with his technique and speed, he makes huge differences. When you manage to control him, you take a big weight off the team.

"But besides being intelligent, he is elusive. He avoids hits even when he is fouled. He is very rarely injured, when you see him physically, you think that the guy must have a perfect lifestyle. And then, there are always moments in the game when you are less lucid, you feel the fatigue.

"But he always has this lucidity and that's unsurprising when you look at his statistics, he doesn't run much, between 5 and 6 kilometres in a game, while you in the middle have already done 10 or 11. The difference is there: he is lucid when he has the ball and that is his strength."

Goal: In fact, he puts his opponent to sleep...

MG: "He puts us to sleep, that's it and that's where he's very strong. He knows how to make himself forgotten, to put himself in the spaces that will put the opponent in danger. For that, Messi is a genius and he is the type of player that we may never see again."

Goal: In a league known for its physicality, can he adapt to Ligue 1?

MG: "Yes, because he's going to be playing in a team where he's going to be with pretty much all the best players in the world at every position. And then it's always the same with Messi, when you look at it, he doesn't take so many hits in a game because players tend not to throw themselves into challenges because he's so fast.

"He doesn't have the same profile as Neymar, so with Messi you're always wary of committing to a tackle or being unbalanced by a dribble. If you go to ground, you can't get it wrong. If you do that, you're dead and that's good news for him. So always defend from a few steps back and try to get him on his right foot."

Goal: What memories do you have of facing Messi?

MG: "Two come to mind. The first is when we lost 1-0 at Camp Nou. It was a few weeks before the pandemic. Barça dominated us the whole game and on the goal he scored, he went inside the defence after a combination that he created. And his shot was like a pass! He rarely uses force when he scores. He often just curls it in, with a disconcerting ease!

"The other memory I have of him is during Roma's famous 3-0 win over Barcelona. On that occasion, I was on the bench and it was as if he didn't exist in that game. He had walked around the pitch and we never felt his presence on the pitch."