Lionel Messi can be ruled out for up to four games after receiving the first red card of his career with Barcelona in the final of the Spanish Supercopa 3-2 from Athletic Bilbao.
Two goals from Antoine Griezmann seemed to have set Barça on course for the first trophy of the Ronald Koeman era, but Asier Villalibre’s goal in the 90th minute pushed the game into extra time.
– Ratings: Messi 5/10, Griezmann 8/10 in wild Supercopa loss
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Inaki Williams gave Athletic, who defeated Real Madrid in the semi-final, the lead in the 94th minute, and when time ran out and Barca was 3-2 behind, Messi was sent off for lashing out at Villalibre in frustration.
The match committee of the Royal Spanish Football Association will meet this week to decide on the duration of the suspension of the Barcelona captain.
Messi, 33, will definitely miss two games, but that could be doubled depending on how the league committee categorizes the dismissal. The ban will apply in La Liga and the Copa del Rey.
Hence, he will miss Thursday’s Copa trip to Cornella side of the third division and next weekend’s game against Elche in La Liga. If the ban is longer, he could also miss the next round of the Copa if Barça makes progress and the match against Athletic at Camp Nou on January 31.
Sunday’s red card was the first Messi received while playing for Barca’s first team, spanning 753 games. However, it was the fourth of his career, following one layoff for Barca B in 2005 and two for Argentina, including one during his international debut that same year.
After Sunday’s loss, Koeman said he empathized with Messi’s frustration.
“I can understand what Messi did,” said Koeman. “I don’t know how many times they’ve made him a mistake, and it’s normal to react if they keep trying to fool you like a player who wants to dribble the ball, but I have to see him carefully.”
Barça entered Sunday’s final after an unbeaten run of nine games in all competitions and was boosted by Messi passing a late fitness test after missing Real Sociedad’s semi-final win.
Two goals from Griezmann seemed poised to extend that series to 10 games, but the Frenchman’s hits were wiped out by first Oscar De Marcos and then Villalibre before Williams hit a brilliant winner.
“I’m pissed off, angry, annoyed,” Griezmann told reporters after the defeat, who denied him his first cutlery set since joining Barca from Atletico Madrid in 2019.
“I have all the bad feelings you can have after losing a final. We made mistakes in setplaying, we defended badly, we didn’t talk in free kicks. It’s important details.”
Despite the loss, Koeman tried to make a brave face.
“We are sad and disappointed, but I still think we are on the right track and that we are improving,” added Koeman.
“We need to improve defensively. We need to be more committed. We can’t make players turn, shoot and pass. But I give everything. I’m not the worst coach right now. [after a defeat] just like I’m not the best after a win, but it’s hard to take. “
For Athletic, it was their first trophy since defeating Barça to win the Spanish Supercopa in 2015, and it only came in the third game of new coach Marcelino’s tenure.
“The credit goes to the players,” said Marcelino. “They deserved to be here for what they did last season and to win these two games [against Madrid and Barca] is unbelievable.
“I would also like to remember Aritz Aduriz and Mikel San Jose and the other players who were here last season but are no longer part of the roster. And also the previous coach. [Gaizka Garitano] and his staff. “