- Lionel Messi was sent off for the first time in his Barcelona career on Sunday when Ronald Koeman’s team was defeated 3-2 by Athletic Bilbao in the Spanish Super Cup final.
- Mess was shown in red for “violent conduct” in the final seconds of extra time, after hitting Bilbao’s Asier Villalibre without a ball.
- The 33-year-old can now be banned for a minimum of four domestic games.
- Bilbao won the tie courtesy of an excellent goal by Inaki Williams, who later said: “When you have heart and faith, anything is possible.”
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Lionel Messi was sent off for the first time in FC Barcelona’s career on Sunday when Ronald Koeman’s team was defeated 3-2 by Athletic Bilbao in the Spanish Super Cup final.
Messi, who was making his 753rd game for Barcelona, was accused of “violent conduct” in the final seconds of extra time, after hitting Bilbao’s Asier Villalibre off the ball.
Messi was never sent off by Barcelona in the 753 games he played for the club. However, he was fired twice while playing for Argentina.
The first expulsion was in his international debut against Hungary in 2005, and the second in the Copa America third place tie against Chile in 2019.
The 33-year-old can now be banned for a minimum of four domestic matches, with the Super Cup suspension transferred to league and cup matches.
Messi’s coach Ronald Koeman defended the Argentine after the game, saying he probably attacked because Bilbao’s players kept him dirty throughout the game.
“I can understand what Messi did,” said Koeman. “I don’t know how many times they missed it, and it’s normal to react when they try to miss it like a player who wants to dribble with the ball, but I need to see it again correctly.”
Barcelona took the lead in the Super Cup final on 40 minutes through Frenchman Antoine Griezmann, but Bilbao drew just two minutes later, thanks to a rare goal from Marcos Oscar.
Griezmann put Barcelona ahead again in the 70th minute, before Villalibre equalized in the final minute and took the equalizer into overtime.
Inaki Williams came back on top with an excellent winner to secure Bilbao’s first trophy since 2015, when he again beat Barcelona in the Super Cup.
—Athletic Club (@Athletic_en) January 17, 2021
“I am very happy,” said scorer Williams afterwards. “But I have not yet processed what we have just done. We have shown that we can compete with any other team. They could not bring us down.”
He added: “We have shown that we are a great team and this is dedicated to all Atlético fans. When you have heart and faith, anything is possible. We work like animals and we were rewarded for it.
“I think we are deserved winners in this Super Cup.”
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