Lionel Messi remains fully “engaged” at Barcelona despite the speculation surrounding his future, says Ronald Koeman, with the Liga giants looking to keep their captain happy and firing on all cylinders.
As things stand, the talismanic presence at Camp Nou will hit free agency in the summer of 2021.
He will be able to discuss pre-contract terms with any suitors from January, with the likes of Manchester City and Paris Saint-Germain said to be heading that queue.
Barca, though, have not given up on the thrashing out of fresh terms, with Messi admitting to feeling “fine” at Camp Nou on the back of a testing summer transfer window for all concerned.
Koeman has seen no letting up from the Argentine in what has been a difficult campaign in Catalunya so far, with a six-time Ballon d’Or being handled with care now that he is 33 years of age.
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“If he is fit to play and good enough then he will play, but of course he is older than before, although he's a player who still wants to be in games and especially to win them,” Koeman told Barcelona’s official website of Messi, who has broken Pele’s record for most goals scored at one club.
“He trains hard every day. He's very engaged.
“As I coach I like to speak to my players and I also speak to him about this and other things because he's also team captain.
“There are squad matters, rules, and we speak about a lot of things, not just the way we play.
“That's part of a coach's day-to-day, you need to be in communication with your players.”
While eager to keep Messi for as long as possible, Barca do have a number of exciting youngsters on their books that could step into the shoes of an all-time great at some stage.
Koeman added on that potential: “It's always nice to talk about youngsters.
“What Ansu Fati and Pedri have done aged just 17 or 18 in such a big team as Barcelona is something very big.
“Pedri has come from Las Palmas very young and is already playing games against teams like Real Madrid and Juventus, doing so fantastically.
“It is important for a club to have youngsters and for them to get chances.
“You need to switch the team around little by little. You still need the older players, but they won't be around forever and you need to plan changes in good time, calmly.
“Pedri has earned his place in games because of his work in training. He has shown me what a good player he is and that he is able to play in a team like Barcelona.”
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Koeman’s debut campaign at Camp Nou has not gone entirely to plan, with Barca currently sat fifth in La Liga, but he is confident that ultimate targets can be hit.
The Dutchman said of his ambition: “At a club like Barcelona, you have to win things and I think our ultimate purpose is to win games and trophies.
“You get no prizes for finishing fourth, you need to be first. That's the mentality that this team must have, we can't settle for anything less.
“We know that this is a season with a lot of changes, the club are in a difficult financial situation, with issues regarding the players' salaries.
“This is a very delicate situation for football clubs because of COVID-19.
“But, Barcelona are still a team that need to win, with the awareness that changes need to be made but still aspiring to the highest level and making the biggest demands.
“That has been the mentality here and always has to be the mentality.”
