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12th March 2016
12:55pm GMT

Speaking with Sports.Sina.com, Ancelotti revealed how he sets his teams up to counter Messi - or at least to begin to try and counter Messi.
"The best way to stop him is by defending as a team, keeping the space between the lines tight and not allowing him to touch the ball," Ancelotti stated rather ambitiously. "You need a lot of players in midfield to make that happen. That reduces Messi’s options and he will see less of the ball, at least in dangerous positions.
"We know that he likes to cut in from the wing and get the ball onto his left foot. But the problem is that Barcelona have more weapons than just Messi. If you focus on Messi, their other attackers can do the damage.
"But if Messi is at 100 per cent physically, it is impossible to try to stop him, no matter who the coach is and what his strategy is. His enormous talent makes it nearly impossible to anticipate what he will do, so there is no way to keep him quiet."
Image via Sports.Sina.com.
It doesn't seem to work too much though. Messi, believe it or not, still has an affect on Barcelona's performances. And Real Madrid, believe it or not, have never been able to really stop him.
Image via MessiNews.net.Explore more on these topics: