Lionel Messi declared that reports linking him with a move to either Manchester City or Chelsea were "all lies" after leading Barcelona to a convincing win over title rivals Atlético Madrid.
There were suggestions of a rift between the talismanic forward and Barca coach Luis Enrique after Messi - who is on a three-man shortlist for the Ballon d'Or, which will be announced on Monday - was left on the bench for the 1-0 defeat at Real Sociedad last Sunday, but the 27-year-old responded with an all-action performance against Atlético.
He helped create Neymar's opener and Luis Suárez's goal before half-time, before scoring the third late on and killing off Atleti's hopes of a comeback after Mario Mandzukic's penalty - which Messi had conceded after tripping Jesús Gámez.
After the game, Messi reaffirmed his commitment to the Catalan giants and insisted he had no plans to move to another club.
"I'm tired of all the things that people have been saying," Messi told Barca's official television channel, quoted in AS.
"People make it out as if I run the club and that's not how it is. I don't ask anyone to make decisions.
"I have no intentions of leaving for any team, not Chelsea nor Manchester City. Everything that has been said is lies and I want people to know that, everything that has been said is false.
"I have heard people say everything possible, that I got on badly with a lot of players and I never denied it because people have always said that I had a fall out with (Pep) Guardiola, Bojan, (Zlatan) Ibrahimovic, etc, but I didn't say anything like that, I never would.
"People say these things because they want to cause us harm, they throw s--- at us, and the attacks are not coming from Madrid."
A torrid week in the Catalan capital had seen the club’s sporting director sacked and Messi linked with a move to Stamford Bridge after reportedly falling out with coach Luis Enrique.
Yet that was forgotten as the star-studded forward line of Messi, Neymar and Suárez all scored in a victory that could have been even more comprehensive.
Messi set up the first two goals before scoring the third himself, while he also gave away the first penalty of his Barcelona career to briefly allow Atlético back into the game.
His attacking display rendered that irrelevant, though, with Atlético having no answer to their hosts’ attacking trio.
Diego Simeone’s visitors had beaten Real Madrid 2-0 in their Copa del Rey last-16 first-leg tie in midweek but were a shadow of their usual selves, with Fernando Torres failing to make an impact as a substitute on his first appearance at the Nou Camp since scoring for Chelsea in the Champions League semi-finals in 2012.
Messi was irresistible, though, his slaloming run ending with a low cross that was mis-hit by Suárez but landed perfectly for Neymar to prod home the opener after 10 minutes.
There was no disputing Suárez’s part in the second, however.
Atlético claimed there was a handball from Messi in the build-up but their appeals fell on deaf ears as the 27-year-old raced clear before setting up Suárez for his fifth goal since moving from Liverpool in the summer.
In a bad-tempered game Neymar received treatment for a poor challenge that left a gaping wound in his ankle, before Messi gave Atlético hope when he fouled Gámez in the area. Mandzukic fired home from the spot.
Simeone brought on Torres in a desperate attempt to get back into the match but Messi finished the contest late on, finding the bottom corner when a loose ball rebounded to him in the area.
Barcelona are just a point behind Real Madrid, who beat Espanyol 3-0 in a game that was overshadowed by another falling out between Gareth Bale and Cristiano Ronaldo.
The Portuguese reacted furiously after Bale failed to pass to him late on in the victory, with a video suggesting he swore at the Welshman.
But manager Carlo Ancelotti defended Bale. “He played a very good game,” Ancelotti said. “He was a protagonist in the first goal as well.
“Later, the fans called for him to pass to Cristiano, but the forwards always want to score when they are up against the goalkeeper.
“Relations between them are very good. We are all pursuing the same goal which is to lift Real Madrid as high as possible.”
However, Ancelotti warned the Welshman: “Altruism is important and if anyone is selfish, we are going to fix it. The fans demand a lot from the important players and Bale is one of those.
“There’s no need to make a big issue out of this. It’s a football moment. The relationship between both is good and very good among all the players.
“We are all working towards the same objective, which is to take Madrid as high as we can go. I don’t need to talk about this.”
Yet the incident will add to the uncertainty surrounding Bale, with reports linking him with a return to the Premier League with Manchester United. It also overshadowed one of Bale’s finest performances in a Madrid shirt during a tough week for the Champions League holders.
Bale will expect to be in the side for the second leg of their Copa del Rey last-16 tie against Atlético Madrid on Thursday.
Source: Telegraph
