Lionel Messi was left in disbelief at Real Madrid 's epic comeback against Manchester City in their thrilling Champions League semi-final second leg.
The Paris Saint-Germain superstar, who spent 21 years of his incredible career at Real's bitter rivals, Barcelona, was watching from home as Los Blancos somehow managed to scored two goals in six minutes of injury time. After super sub Rodrygo forced the match into extra-time, Messi refused to believe the turnaround when Karim Benzema completed it from the penalty spot after profiting from a clumsy Ruben Dias foul.
Close friend Sergio Aguero, formerly of Atletico Madrid, and ex-City teammate Carlos Tevez were watching the remarkable events unfold together on a Twitch livestream. During the show, Aguero revealed what the Barcelona legend text him in reaction to Benzema's extra-time winner which made it 6-5 on aggregate.
"Leo sent me a message after Real Madrid's third goal," the Argentine, who was forced to retire earlier this season due to a heart condition, told Tevez. "He said: 'It's a joke, it's not possible'."
Messi, whose PSG were knocked out by Real in the round-of-16 thanks to a Benzema hat-trick, was certainly not alone in his astonishment, with the world watching on in awe of Los Blancos' third successive comeback in the knockout stages. The sensational result booked their place in the final against Liverpool on Saturday, May 28 at the Stade de France in Paris.
Not everyone enjoyed the box office-level entertainment, though, as the Citizens were left heartbroken. Pep Guardiola 's club have never won the Champions League and all six of his seasons in charge have resulted in disappointment on the European front, with City underachieving on numerous occasions.
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Guardiola, Messi's former manager, was visibly stunned by the outcome, having been just minutes away from a mouthwatering final clash with Premier League rivals Liverpool. "We were close. We were close. But in the end we could not reach it," the Citizens boss told BT Sport.
"It is simple. In the first-half we did not have game, we were not good enough. But we did not suffer much. After we scored the goal we were better. We found our tempo and our game and the players were comfortable. It is not like in the last 10 minutes they attack and attack and you suffer.
"It didn't happen. They put a lot of players in the box, with [Eder] Militao, Rodrygo, Vinicius [Junior], Benzema and they put in crosses and scored two goals. We didn't play our best, but it is normal, a semi-final, the players feel the pressure and wanting to do it.
"Football is unpredictable, it is a game like this. We have to accept it. Now we need to process that and come back, with our people at home and the last four games we have."
Guardiola's team now only have the Premier League to concentrate on, hosting a resurgent Newcastle United on Sunday afternoon. The defending champions will start the match in second place if Liverpool win or draw their match against Tottenham Hotspur at Anfield on Saturday evening.
