In the two days leading up the their last league game, and in light of its importance, Pep Guardiola closed the remaining practices and asked that his players cancel all individual interviews. Before the “gag order” went into effect,  FC Barcelona and Argentine International forward Lionel Messi (22) gave several interviews, including one with Catalan new site Sport’s journalists Javier Miguel and Ivan San Antonio. Here is a translated version. The original can be found here.

Do you feel that this Liga is special because you have had to sweat like never before?

Are you excited about celebrating the triumph in Camp Nou?
 
Of course!  But first we have to win against Valladoid and then celebrate it all with our fans.

When will we see you wearing the captain’s armband?

I don’t know. Right now we have great captains at Barça, players with lots of experience. But there’s no doubt that some day I would like to be captain.

In the celebration of the Champions League last year you promised to win it all again. Do you remember?
 
Yes, more or less.

In the end, it was not to be . . .

Well, we lacked very little. If we had had the luck of last year with the goal of Iniesta, we would now be in the Champions League final. But you can’t win it every year. Barcelona has only won three [Champions League titles] in all of its history, but next year we’ll try again even harder, if possible.

Was the game against Inter in Camp Nou one in which you felt the most powerless in your life?

Yes, but the truth is that I was convinced that we would get it, that the second goal would come.

Luckily there is not time in football to think about the past . . .
 
That’s true. Here everything goes quickly. The only thing that matters is the present; the past and the future are ‘wet paper’ [useless/not worth the paper they are written on]. When I look back, it gives me vertigo.

Well, presently you are close to catching Ronaldo, if you score two goals against Valladolid, and becoming the blaugrana that has scored the most goals in one league season, with 34.

I’m not obsessed with it. If it comes, all the better, but the most important thing is la Liga.

Do the constant comparisons from Madrid between you and Cristiano Ronaldo bother you?

I don’t compete individually with anyone. My goal is to help the team by doing the best that I can.

Do you know what ‘Villarato’ is?
 
The truth is that I don’t really understand what ‘Villarato’ means.

Speaking bluntly, that Barça is helped by the referees . . .

The referees makes mistakes in favor of all the teams. Sometimes they give and other times they take, but I don’t think that they go out on the field with the intention of helping anyone; although, if anyone can feel favored, it’s Real Madrid and Barça, because with the big teams there is always more permissiveness.

Do the elections in Barcelona interest you?

I‘ll be at the World Cup and I don’t think that I’ll be able to follow them. I’m going to be focused on other things.

Cristiano Ronaldo in an interview did not close the door to Barcelona in the future, assuring that ‘you can never say never.’ Does Leo Messi also leave the door open to the possibility of signing for Madrid?
 
The truth is that I don’t see myself at Madrid or any other club. I’m very happy at Barcelona and if it were up to me, I would continue here for many years. Although it is true that one never knows what is going to happen, but I insist it will never be because I want to continue at Barcelona for all the time I have left and more.

Is it true that the pressure on you is so much that now when you score one goal, they complain that you ‘only’ scored one goal?

I’m used to having a lot of pressure. First from myself. But to score a goal is amazing. Because of this, it seems at times a craziness when someone says I have to score more goals.

Have you already collected on the bet with Pinto for having scored this season more than 38 goals?

I have to pay off the bet because I told him that if I scored more I would pay him something.

And what is it?

That stays between us.