Atletico Madrid often dealt with the impressive skills of Lionel Messi during his time at Barcelona. The constant danger posed by Messi was a continuous worry for Atletico’s coach, Diego Simeone, and his defenders as they tried to stop the Argentine superstar. Former Atletico defender Filipe Luis provides insight into the strategic approach Simeone used when facing Messi, often assigning the ex-Brazilian international as the direct marker.
After facing Messi multiple times during his Barcelona period, Simeone came up with a unique nickname for the prolific Argentine. According to Filipe Luis, who often had the role of directly marking Messi, Simeone amusingly called the football maestro ‘The Midget.’
He told Marca: “At Atleti, Simeone put four players on Messi! So when he scored, it was not one player’s fault, it was just Messi. Before the games against Barcelona, Simeone never used Messi’s name. He always called him ‘the dwarf’, so when we were in front of him, we would not be afraid of him.”
Though the nickname may sound a bit disrespectful, it suggests that Simeone had a special plan to ease the pressure of facing Messi, potentially lessening the intimidating presence of the legendary player.
Simeone’s efforts to prevent Messi from making an impact were frequently unsuccessful, as the Argentine consistently performed well against the Rojiblancos. Messi managed to score 32 goals in 42 games against Atletico, establishing the team from Madrid as one of his preferred opponents in La Liga. It’s worth noting that Simeone no longer faces the challenge of figuring out how to stop Messi, as the latter is currently playing for Inter Miami in MLS.
Messi is currently on a break as MLS is in its offseason, and he won’t be back in action until 2024. Despite the break, the iconic player has been seen working out at the ‘Glute Lab’ alongside his wife Antonela Roccuzzo, aiming to keep up his fitness levels. Messi and the Miami team are scheduled to return to action in January, with a first pre-season friendly scheduled against El Salvador.
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