Messi backs Batista as national coach

BUENOS AIRES - Striker Lionel Messi renewed his support for interim Argentina coach Sergio Batista, and said he hoped he would stay as coach until the 2014 World Cup.

“My wish is for him to stay,” Messi told Argentine daily Ole published Tuesday.

However, the Barcelona star acknowledged that “this is not something that players decide.”

On the day Argentina were set to play world champions Spain in a friendly in Buenos Aires, Messi noted that “you need time to work” in order to get to play like the European giants.

“I don’t take ‘Checho’ (Batista) as an interim coach, and I don’t feel like he is in a trial period,” he said.