Messi demands Barcelona star never plays for club again after shock loss

Lionel Messi has reportedly demanded that one player is axed after Barcelona suffered their first defeat of the season against Espanyol on Wednesday night.

Barca boss Ernesto Valverde played a virtually full-strength team as his side travelled to local rivals Espanyol for their Copa day Rey quarter-final first-leg clash.

But despite dominating possession, having plenty of chances and Messi himself missing a penalty, Barca suffered a 1-0 defeat as Espanyol struck with three minutes to go.

Messi was said to be furious with the loss and Diario Gol reports that he demanded that Aleix Vidal never plays for the club again.

Handed a rare opportunity to shine, Vidal’s struggles reportedly infuriated Messi as the Spaniard failed to link-up successfully with his team-mates on a bad night for the Catalan giants.

The report goes onto state that Valverde will now look to move Vidal on after also being unimpressed with the 28-year-old’s display.