Is the question...

Barcelona has 4 draws and 1 win the last five games and loses 3 times more without Messi on the pitch.

Some Barcelona fans have been criticizing Valverde for his rotation, and the coming games for Barca are Sevilla away and two times Real Madrid. So the question for Valverde is... should he rest Messi or not (at all)?

The risk of playing him too much is getting him injured or too tired at the end of the season. The risk of not playing him is taking losses.

This is a dilemma for Valverde, so what should he do? Any inputs...

I think Valverde is not going to sleep, he is the second most paid coach in the world after El Cholo and all eyes are focused on him.
Problem is that if he benches Messi and Barca looses the league his career at top football is over. And Messi pace lately after his muscular problem is worrying...
I think Messi won’t let him the choice, loosing the Copa to Madrid is almost awarding them the Copa. First leg result was already a big blow benching Messi.
I think Barca can’t afford resting him, they should take the risk.

Real madrid are very inconsistent this year. Even if they beat barca they could very well lose to any of the other teams left. But I agree, I don’t think that Messi will be benched the second leg. However maybe rest him vs Sevilla or RM in la liga as they could afford losing a point or three... if they don’t win. In either way, it is not sustainable to play every game... imo.

He should start against Sevilla. Even when he plays I still see Sevilla as favourites though. Barcelona’s midfield is really not fluid and smooth, and this is affecting their attack.

I really hope Coutinho gets this game ahead of Dembele. He’s been good off the bench lately and he is the best at linking the midfield and attack after Arthur. Messi can’t do everything. Really want this game for Coutinho to start.

I believe Madrid last game was an accident, they defeated Atletico at the Wanda 2 weeks ago. Barca still have 2 clasicos always and Atletico away, they can’t afford loosing points at Sevilla or at least try to not to. Despite resting players, a winless game may affect the confidence...
Messi this season doesn’t rest himself for Copa America, i love this... let’s see what happens.

Every day i ask myself what have i done to deserve Lionel Andres Messi..

That just sounds wrong

Rest him lol. Give us the Copa and you can have La Liga.

Well I think we can mark this thread as answered Pele. You shall not rest Lionel Messi.

That Barca can’t afford resting him :)

Damned if you do, damned if you don't. Not sure you can afford to given how much he impacts the game when playing, but it would really be a smart move if they could rest him here or there.

Its really sad to see how dependant Barca is of Messi, one day, he won't be forever one of the best player in the world, they need to find an alternative sooner than later to him. Barca future isn't looking too bright unless they can.

In american sports they have something called mvp (you probably already know this lol)... which stands for ”most valuable player”. I love the words used because it doesn’t directly say it is the best player, even if it somewhat to a limited extent implies that.

Messi is the mvp of football by far, no other player is as indispensable to his club as he is. No one is a gamechanger the way he is.

I think most people agree with this without having to start the even more poisonous debate on who the GOAT is (which gives more room for biased inputs).

@Pelle I personally agree, but there propably people out there that don't. Still I wonder what Barca true problem is, did they became dependant of Messi along the way or is it Messi that alway performed so good that the other player end up underperforming... I'm not sure to be sincere.

The best way to answer your this debate Pele, Emobot is to see what happens when he eventually leaves Barcelona. Then i think we will be able to appreciate just what he has done. Goat alright. Probably of all time but i wasn't around to see other eras so that is just my opinion

@emo it’s mainly psychological and tactical.
Psychological positively for his teammates who gain confidence and negatively for rivals, it’s impacting them heavily specially when you face him for the first time.
Tactically for rivals, their Cb will never cross midlefield line because Messi not tracking back is a danger even without the ball. The zone is constantly marked.
With the ball it’s even worse, many take a mid a Cb and a winger with tactical directions specially for him. That leaves huge space and oblige teams to defend deep which help Busquets and Pique to play the way they do and not concede fast attacks...

Barça wins even when Messi has a bad game, his presence alone gives edge. And sometimes you see him resting himself during a game. He has a good effort management.

Leo Messi is the best of all time, while he is the best football player in the 21st century with no doubt. The player to win six Ballon d'Or awards, & six European Golden Shoes. Just hearing his name in the squad will make the opponent players nervous and that is why he is considered as the best player in the world and widely regarded as one of the greatest players of all time.