Argentina’s football president Claudio Tapia has said he’s asked Lionel Messi to play less for Barcelona in order to be fresher for the World Cup this summer.

“I hope that all the players will have the same form that they are in at the moment,” Tapia explained. ”Sergio Aguero is playing fantastically and Lionel Messi is always strong. ”This is important for the coaches and directors, we spoke with Messi for him to look after himself and play less at Barcelona.” Claudio Tapia | Source

Something tells me that as the Champions League and La Liga heat up in the coming months one of the main Barcelona pieces will be Lionel Messi. As much as it would be nice for Argentina to have Messi play 45 minutes each game, that just isn’t going to happen.

Why it benefits anyone to make this public is beyond me. Perhaps it will relieve pressure off of Lionel Messi and Argentina come World Cup time, but either way it puts both parties in a strange situation.