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Lionel Messi said he wanted to win the Copa del Rey in Barcelona to ease the suffering of the Champions League defeat against Liverpool, ranked among the "worst moments of his career".
Speaking at his first four-year press conference, the 31-year-old striker said he was still thinking of defeat in the semifinal on May 7 when the Reds eliminated their 3-0 deficit in the first leg.
"We have been hit hard," he said.
"Winning the Copa del Rey will be the best way to end the season."
The La Liga champions would complete the national double if they beat Valencia on Saturday (20:00 BST), but Messi warned that defeat would mean that the team "would feel a lot worse" than she did. Did it.
He added: "We must apologize for the second half of the match in Liverpool [when they conceded three goals in the 4-3 aggregate loss] not because of the result, but because of its appearance and the fact that we are not in competition. It was one of the worst experiences of my career. "
The Argentine striker, who also spoke of the club's capitulation to Rome in the quarter-finals of the Champions League last season, defended his coach Ernesto Valverde, claiming that the players were to blame for the defeat against Anfield . Camp.
When asked if he was planning to leave Barcelona himself, Messi replied, "No, no, no.
"I've had problems with the national team and I still want to keep trying to win something.The Champions League exit does not make me lose my desire to be here." . "
The legend of the club could win Saturday its seventh Copa del Rey and its 21st major trophy with the Catalan giants.
In an interview with Spanish magazine El Pais, Messi's teammate Gerard Pique said the defeat against Liverpool was a "nightmare".
The 32-year-old defender said: "On the mental plane, some were affected by what happened in Rome."
"The first goal came very quickly [in the 15th minute] and suddenly the image of Rome appeared.
"Then they scored two more goals in quick succession and it starts to look a lot like what happened a year ago.It was very difficult, it was very difficult to get up because the days go by and that you can not forget this defeat. "
TEAM NEWS
Barcelona striker Philippe Coutinho is expected to return after an injury, but he is not sure to play a leading role as the Valverde team come for the fifth time in a row at the Copa del Rey.
Dutch goalkeeper Jasper Cillessen is expected to start with German first choice Marc-Andre Ter Stegen still dismissed because of a knee problem.
Valencia will not have winger Denis Cheryshev, who also has a knee injury, although he has traveled with the team to the Benito Villamarin stadium in Seville.
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