Barcelona news: Quique Setien refuses to wade in on Messi-Abidal row

Lionel Messi took to social media and warned directors against making generalised comments

Barcelona manager Quique Setien is determined to ignore the club spat between Lionel Messi and Eric Abidal, intending to maintain focus on his coaching duties.

Club sporting director Abidal claimed the players to be unhappy and not working hard enough under former head coach Ernesto Valverde, who was fired in January.

Lionel Messi took to social media and warned directors against making generalised comments that could potentially apply to certain players, but Setien emphasised his priority to focus on the coaching side of football.

He said: “There are problems in every club that cannot be controlled but do not talk to me about them, this does not matter to me. I focus on my work only. I have no time for such problems and I only focus on football.

“I focus on football. All I’m interested in is getting the best out of these players. There are things I can’t control and I’m not interested in them.”

Setien managed Real Betis for two seasons before taking over from Valverde last month, his side currently trail Real Madrid at the top of La Liga by three points, and face Athletic Bilbao in the Copa del Ray on Thursday night.

Abidal is due to meet with Barca President Josep Maria Bartomeu to discuss his future at the club, but Setien wants to ensure that these issues do not distract his players.

He said: “’I will try my best to assure that what happened between Messi and Abidal does not affect the team.

“He (Messi) has the experience and the know-how to decide what he has to do. I’m not going to tell Messi how to live his life – or anyone else, for that matter. My job is to make sure they come into work happy. The rest isn’t down to me.”

Messi and Abidal were teammates at Barcelona between 2007 and 2013, the pair lined up together in the 2011 Champions League final against Manchester United.