Lionel Messi has acknowledged that he is back to his best for Barcelona after a difficult year in which he was accused of tax fraud and suffered numerous injuries.
The four-times winner of the Ballon d’Or award has been in scintillating form since the turn of the year, having racked up 34 goals in La Liga this season and another eight in the Champions League. That means Messi has already surpassed his tally from last season, when Real Madrid’s Cristiano Ronaldo beat him to the Ballon d’Or for the second successive year.
In an interview with Barça magazine ahead of Wednesday’s Champions League quarter-final first leg against Paris Saint-Germain, the 27-year-old Argentina forward believes he has put a tricky period in his career behind him.
“The truth is that I began the season in another way after everything that had happened to me last year,” said Messi.
“I spent a lot of time away from the pitch [injured] and when I returned I wasn’t in great form. I have tried to forget what I experienced, though, and recover my best version and now I feel really good.”
In total, Messi has scored 45 goals from just 44 matches this term and became La Liga’s record goalscorer of all time in November. His goal against Sevilla was his 399th in official games for Barcelona.
However, Messi admitted that his priority in life is no longer football following the birth of his son Thiago last year.
“Everything has changed,” he said. “Above all how I think. Now it is [Thiago] first, then everything else after that.
“It has changed the way I see games, too. Before, if I missed a chance or I had a bad game, I would not speak to anyone for three of four days.
“Now, I get home after a game, see my son and everything else passes me by. To be a parent has helped me grow and realise that there are things in life other than football.”
However, Messi is set to face trial in an alleged tax fraud after his appeal against being named in the case was rejected by a judge in Barcelona last year.
