Lionel Messi is delighted to lift his first Copa del Rey trophy as Barcelona captain

Lionel Messi took over the Barcelona armband from Andres Iniesta in 2018. The Argentine has been phenomenal for the Spanish club over the last decade and has been their main player.

After taking over as the Barcelona captain, this was the first Copa del Rey win for Messi. He scored two goals in the final and Barcelona eventually won the final against Athletic Bilbao by a 4-0 margin.

Lionel Messi was delighted to lift his first Copa del Rey trophy as captain. He told Barca TV, via Marca: “It’s very special to be the captain of this club. It’s a very special Copa for me because I’m able to lift it [myself].”

“Not being able to celebrate it with our fans is a pity. The situation is what we have to live with. It’s a shame. The Copas are always special and the fans enjoy them a lot. These are two clubs that are used to these finals and [used to] enjoying them a lot.”

Messi further added: “We knew that Athletic play like this with a very rigid 4-4-2. We were patient on the ball and created our own space. We moved about a lot in the first half and I think they dropped off in the second.”

Messi concluded: “We found it difficult to get started in the first half of the season. We dropped points out of innocence. We’ve been getting stronger, very good, and we’re in the title race.”

“The other day, unfortunately, we weren’t able to get a good result in the Clasico.”