Messi ready to spoil Pep Guardiola’s return

Summer 2009 marked a turning point in the career of the then 21-year-old Lionel Messi. Pep Guardiola took over as Barcelona coach, and immediately set about guiding the Argentinian towards being undisputedly the world’s top player.

Barca won a phenomenal 14 trophies in the next four seasons, with Messi scoring over 200 times, and netting in the final as the Champions League was won in both 2009 and 2011. He also won four consecutive Ballon D’Or awards, and finished as European football’s top scorer three times.

Guardiola tonight sits on the Camp Nou opposition bench for the first time, as his Bayern Munich team face Barca in their Champions League semi-final first leg.