• Coach backs Messi after miss helped Chelsea through
• Guardiola: 'My admiration for him knows no limits'
Pep Guardiola has defended Lionel Messi after his penalty miss as good as cost Barcelona a place in the Champions League final.
Messi has enjoyed an extraordinary run of form in the past four seasons, scoring 63 goals in all competitions this season alone. However, he failed to find the net in either leg of Barcelona's semi-final against Chelsea – and crashed his second-half penalty off the bar during their 3-2 aggregate defeat.
He also finished without a goal on Saturday when Barca slipped to a 2-1 La Liga defeat at home to Real Madrid, which effectively ended their bid for a fourth straight title.
Guardiola said: "We have got this far thanks to this kid. More than ever I want to thank him for what he's done.
"My admiration for him knows no limits. He is an example for all of us, his competitiveness inspires us. He's daring, he's brave and he plays fantastically well in all kinds of different conditions.
"I don't doubt he will have a few bad hours now but sometimes you smile and sometimes you are sad and it's our turn to be sad. Someone else is going to the final in Munich and we have to come back next year."
Guardiola was left wondering whether luck was simply against the club following a spectacular run of success that has brought 13 trophies since he took over in 2008.
"I have a feeling that sometimes football is like this. To be honest, I just think that this year was not our turn. This year, it seems like we couldn't do it and that's it.
"I am sorry if I am not very clear but I have a lot of emotions inside right now. Maybe in time I will see things more clearly. I don't even know how I feel really. I don't know what to tell the players about why they are not in the final Yes we are sad but it's not our saddest night."
The 41-year-old coach, who has yet to extend his contract beyond the end of this season, said he may have tactical lessons to learn, but he would not change his team's playing style.
"Probably we did something wrong so we need to see what that was and try to correct it in the future. Maybe this is a lesson I should learn, that we should hold back and not be so offensive.
"[But] we are not a team that can play in different ways. We have a peculiar way of playing and the opposition adjusts to that and that's it. We did everything we could and we got to a semi-final but no matter what we did it hasn't been enough."
Guardiola said he would discuss his future with the club's president Sandro Rosell in the coming days, and admitted that the positive reaction from the fans despite their disappointment might help persuade him to stay.
"I imagine so yes. In the next few days I'll talk to the president and we'll take a relaxed decision on what is the best thing for the club."
Barcelona, meanwhile, have confirmed that their defender Gerard Pique has been given the all-clear after he was taken to hospital as a precaution following a collision with team-mate Victor Valdes.
"Gerard Pique underwent various tests which ruled out any injury," the club said. "The player will remain under observation until Wednesday." Read More
انسخ الكود التالى و ضعه فى موقعك او مدونتك.
