222 quotes found
"I've always given everything for every team I've played for so that the ordinary fans, the people in the stadium, could identify with me. I owe a lot to the fans of Roma, Fiorentina and Argentina. They were the reason I played, my inspiration. I always worked hard to improve my game, to prove to myself that I could be one of the best for as long as possible. To be honest, I couldn’t care less what the others think."
"When I was playing football I never enjoyed it that much, I was never happy … if I scored two goals, I wanted a third, I always wanted more. Now it’s all over I can look back with satisfaction, but I never felt that way when I was playing."
"[..] I was watching him in training for the first couple of days and he was one of the worst trainers I'd ever seen [...] His technique was lousy, his shots were going wide – but then he scored ten goals in the first five or six games and I realised what a player he was. (Brian Laudrup, his ex-Fiorentina teammate, 2006)."
"Steven Gerrard was a great player and Rob Brown knows nothing about football."
"I have the disgrace to play in this club"
"The day I stop enjoying football is the day ill go to drink tea with my mom."
"The only things I care is my mother and the ball."
"Why should I run when the ball can do it."
"They're gonna write that I'm a fag and the people is gonna believe it"
"I dream of being able to score another goal against England... this time with the right hand."
"You Pasman, you have it inside, too."
"I am with Maduro, I will continue with him and I will die with him."
"Even now as a manager, when I suffer a loss it still feels like a first loss, the first I suffered as a player. And when I win, it is like my first win, too. This is me, this is my personality, it is who I am and will always be."
"There is no secret here. I will give my all, as I always have. This way I prove to the people who hired me, and those who support me, how much it means."
"The unconventional and uninhibited way of living was a part of my life. I won't be like that now."
"He made the first Gaelic football goal in a regular football match. We won't forget."
"Ball is made of leather, leather comes from cows, cows eat grass, and there is where the ball must be."
"Finals are not to be played; they are to be won."
"Failure is a necessary part of success."
"I was a forward, and one of the obligations of a forward is to score goals."
"It has changed a bit, of course. The speed and all that. But let me tell you something: in the olden times, let's say the year, I don't know, in the Sixties for instance, we would eat a plate of spaghetti and run out onto the pitch. Then people started saying 'they're too full', meaning you'd get bloated like a pig if you ate spaghetti. But this shows you those guys were clever because nowadays all the medical experts recommend pasta for athletes and footballers because you digest it slowly."
"We must always strive to improve, little by little."
"Do you know how many rules there are in football? … There are 17 rules. That's it. Everyone talks about football and nobody remembers this simple fact."
"I always enjoyed training, sweating and learning"
"I've always been a team player, that's all. One for all and all for one."
"People nowadays are obsessed with golden awards, about who is the best — when we know in reality the one with more money wins."
"I always wanted to have the ball for myself; she was my girlfriend."
"Diego is Diego and for me he is the greatest player of all time. Even after a million years I am not even going to be close to Maradona. I have no intention of comparing myself with Maradona - I want to make my own history for something I have achieved."
"It doesn't matter if I am better than Cristiano Ronaldo, all that matters is that Barcelona are better than Madrid."
"Ronaldo (Brazilian footballer) was my hero. He was the best forward I've ever seen. He was so fast that he could score a goal from nothing and he struck the ball better than anyone I've seen."
"Being a dad changes everything for the better and I’m really enjoying it."
"Barcelona gave me everything, they took a chance on me when nobody else would. I never have any desire to play for anybody else, I will be here for as long as they want me."
"[Becoming a father] has changed everything. He [Thiago] comes first then everything else. It has also changed the way I see a match. Before if I lost or did something wrong I didn't talk to anyone for three or four days, until it passed. Now, I come home after a game, I see my son and everything is alright."
"I love to see T-shirts or flags with Che Guevara, Diego [Maradona] and Argentina anywhere in the world. It gives me a beautiful feeling."
"I will never go to trial against Barça because it is the club that I love, which has given me everything since I arrived here. It's the club of my life, I made my life here. Messi interview with Goal, announced he remains at Barca - NAIJANEWS247 September 4, 2020."
"I never set out to be the best player in history. I think I'm just another footballer. On the pitch we are all the same and when the game starts I always try to improve myself. My intention is that when I retire, I will be remembered for being a good person."
"I knew that at some point God was going to give it to me and I don't know why, but I felt it was going to be like this. Once again he made me very happy."
"In football as in watchmaking, talent and elegance mean nothing without rigour and precision""
"You have to keep working hard and playing well because people will start to forget what you have done before if you don’t""
"When you lose, you get up, you make mistakes and you learn. And then you become a better player""
"The day you think there is no improvement to be made, is a sad one""
"I’m never satisfied. I always push my limits and try to get better every day""
"Every year I try to grow as a player and not get stuck in a rut. I try to improve my game in every way possible. But that trait is not something I've worked on, it's part of me""
"You cannot allow your desire to be a winner to be diminished by achieving success before and I believe there is room for improvement in every sportsman""
"I always try to improve and score more goals. I want to be the best.""
"I always want more. Whether it’s a goal, or winning a game, I always want to improve.""
"My ambition is always to get better and better""
"For my part, I try to do my bit to make people's lives more bearable, in particular children across the globe who are having problems""
"There’s nothing more satisfying than seeing a happy and smiling child. I always help in any way I can, even if it’s just by signing an autograph. A child’s smile is worth more than all the money in the world""
"Sometimes you have to accept you can't win all the time""
"I never think about the play or visualize anything. I do what comes to me at that moment. Instinct. It has always been that way""
"There are more important things in life than winning or losing a game""
"The best decisions aren’t made with your mind, but with your instinct""
"Allow yourselves to dream and then chase after those dreams. That will always require effort and sacrifice, but be persistent!”"
"Money is not a motivating factor. Money doesn't thrill me or make me play better because there are benefits to being wealthy. I'm just happy with a ball at my feet. My motivation comes from playing the game I love. If I wasn't paid to be a professional footballer I would willingly play for nothing.""
"I always thought I wanted to play professionally, and I always knew that to do that I’d have to make a lot of sacrifices."
"I made sacrifices by leaving Argentina, leaving my family to start a new life. I changed my friends, my people.""
"Everything. But everything I did, I did for football, to achieve my dream""
"You have to fight to reach your dream. You have to sacrifice and work hard for it""
"I have fun like a child in the street. When the day comes when I'm not enjoying it, I will leave football""
"You can overcome anything, if and only if you love something enough""
"I've always really just liked football, and I've always devoted a lot of time to it. When I was a kid, my friends would call me to go out with them, but I would stay home because I had practice the next day""
"I start early, and I stay late, day after day, year after year, it took me 17 years and 114 days to become an overnight success""
"I always thought that if you want to be the best, you have to work harder than everyone else""
"I prefer to win titles with the team ahead of individual awards or scoring more goals than anyone else. I'm more worried about being a good person than being the best football player in the world. When all this is over, what are you left with? When I retire, I hope I am remembered for being a decent guy""
"I'm lucky to be part of a team who help to make me look good, and they deserve as much of the credit for my success as I do for the hard work we have all put in on the training ground""
"In the semi-final Messi showed he's the top man. He is only 20 as well, imagine how good he will be in the next 10 years. I'd love to play alongside him."
"He is from another planet. He is the main point of reference and the key man in the whole Barça team."
"I'm not sure he is human."
"To me, Messi is the greatest player in the world right now. He has got a fantastic vision of the game, and what he can do technically - it's just crazy. The things he can do with the ball - and at pace and top speed - is just amazing. What decides it for me is not his many goals, although his goal account is impressive, but the thing is that he can do so much for his team. What counts is the total amount of his many, many qualities. He is just the greatest."
"Messi is the best and cannot be compared to anyone. Messi cannot be compared to anything."
"When you face him you have to make decisions in an instant. When he approaches you, you have to make the sign of the cross and pray that everything will be alright."
"I’ve always said Messi is the best player in the world."
"Although he may not be human, it's good that Messi still thinks he is."
"Messi is God, as a person and even more as a player."
"People often say to me they saw Pele and Maradona play. In the future, I will be able to say I saw Messi play."
"There is no doubt, you're from another galaxy. Thanks Leo."
"Messi is a joke. For me, the best ever."
"Is Messi playing in the Champions League or is he playing a Playstation game?"
"He plays like he’s on PlayStation, it’s unbelievable. People who say otherwise either don’t know anything about football or are just talking nonsense."
"Leo is from another planet. What makes him the best is that other great players have had ups and downs, like Maradona. He wasn’t half of what Leo is at Barça. Messi has had so many good years in his career that he deserves to be considered the best ever."
"Messi does not need his right foot. He only uses the left and he's still the best in the world! Imagine if he also used his right foot ... Then we would have serious problems!"
"For years I thought that there would never be a player like Maradona. But now Messi is at his level."
"It’s something for me that I can tell my kids that I’ve played against Messi when we watch him on television. For me he’s got everything. He is magical to watch. When I finish and look back, and he will still be going strong, I will be able to say to myself I tested myself against the best. And quite clearly, for me, he is the best ever. He’s a great individual player but a great person as well and a credit to football."
"I am not crazy enough to compare myself with Messi because he is the best there ever was and the best there will ever be."
"He's a once in a generation player. I think it's unlikely that any human being again will repeat the numbers that Messi is getting."
"He's been by far and away the best footballer in the world for the last five or six years. He's the best player of all time and if he stays fit he will continue for the next five or six years. The things he does right now are out of this world. Of course, he doesn't play by himself, but he is simply incredible. He always finds a way and is always a yard quicker than everyone else. If you have a player like that on your side, you needn't fear anyone."
"I think Messi is the best in the world, a very good player and that he is a gift from god."
"He is by far the best player in the world – he’s a one-off."
"Messi is class. There is him, and then there is the rest. What he does is extraordinary. He demands admiration."
"Messi is the best, for me, Messi is God, he is the best and always will be – for what he has given the team and for how much he has made me enjoy being in the same team as him."
"It's the efficiency that made the difference. Messi is fantastic, the best player ever."
"Lionel Messi is out of this world, he's an alien. For me, he is the best player in the history of football."
"Messi is God – you see him on the pitch and he is spectacular."
"Messi is unbelievable. It is great to get the chance to play against the best in the world. It doesn't really need repeating: he is a fantastic player."
"Lionel Messi. Oh... I think this guy is fantastic. He’s the best player I have ever seen in my life."
"Needless to repeat, that he’s the best player in the world, the best of all-time. I enjoy training with him, he makes everything easier."
"He's the best of all time."
"Messi has always been my idol."
"He's achieved so many great things and set the bar so high that practically nobody is ever going to reach it."
"Messi is the best player in the world. We'd have to kidnap him to stop him."
"It's impossible to control Leo for 90 minutes."
"Messi is an alien, that dedicates himself to playing with humans."
"Messi is so talented that 70% of the goals I scored at Barça came from his boots. With him in your team, you're calm."
"Having him as a rival is complicated. You see game after game that it is impossible to take the ball off him, impossible to stop him. There are no words to decribe his talent. For me, and as others have said, he is from another planet."
"Messi is out of this world. He is a special player and you can't compare him to me. It would be unfair to him."
"It's a gift. I haven’t seen any other player, at least during my career, who plays like Messi does. For me that makes him the best footballer in the world."
"For me, he's the best player in the world. That's football. Defending Messi one-on-one is not possible."
"Messi is the best player of all time, and today he had a stormer."
"I think Messi's just beyond everyone else."
"The best striker I have ever faced? Lionel Messi. It has always been Messi."
"The best player ever? Lionel Messi."
"I spent four beautiful years with Messi at Barcelona. He is an exceptional player. I'm very happy that he was my teammate."
"This award says I’m the best player in the world, but I’m not even the best player at Barcelona."
"I have seen the player who will inherit my place in Argentine football and his name is Messi. Messi is a genius and he can become an even better player. His potential is limitless and I think he’s got everything it takes to become Argentina’s greatest player."
"He deserves 10 out of 10 for doing what he does."
"I see Messi every time he grabs the ball and accelerates. But he is shy, like a little brother who likes to hang out with PlayStation rather than talk. We must protect him. I'd personally put him in a drawer of my bedside table."
"The other day I saw one of his games. He was running with the ball at a hundred percent full speed, I don’t know how many touches he took, maybe five or six, but the ball was glued to his foot. It’s practically impossible."
"Nobody was so wonderful at 19 years, neither Pele nor Maradona."
"Leo floats over the field - sometimes you have the sensation he's not even there, that he's hiding. But he's there and the rival knows it."
"Messi is out of this planet, I would say he is so far ahead of the rest of the players playing right now and I would say historically as well. There are not words to describe him."
"Once they said they can only stop me with a pistol, but today you need a machine gun to stop him."
"For me, to watch Messi play is a pleasure – it's like having an orgasm – it's an incredible pleasure."
"When I see Messi playing, I think he should win the Ballon d'Or every year. I have no doubt. He is an unbelievable player."
"The ball stays glued to his foot; I’ve seen great players in my career, but I’ve never seen anyone with Messi's ball control."
"He is probably the best player of the last 20 years. He is such a slippery player. Because of his height and quickness he is difficult to pin down and his balance is exceptional."
"He is an exceptional talent. I still think Diego Maradona is the best player I have ever seen – but Messi is closing in fast. He's a wonderful sight in full flight and we are lucky to have him around."
"Leo is a virtuoso. He does things with the ball that just seem impossible. He's got great ability. His control of the ball when he is running at high speed is excellent. He has a superb shot. There is precision in his passing. To summarise... he's got everything. He has every single attribute you would want to find in a player."
"If Gary Lineker is saying that Messi is making him realise just how sh*t he was — then imagine how the rest of us feel."
"My record stood for 40 years - 85 goals in 60 games - and now the best player in the world has broken it, and I'm delighted for him. He is an incredible player, gigantic."
"Technically, we’re practically at the same level."
"His control and technique while going at full speed is unique in the world."
"Messi will be the player to win the most Ballons d'Or in history. He will win five, six, seven. He is incomparable. He's in a different league."
"For me, Messi is the greatest. I played with Romario, Rivaldo, Ronaldo, Michael Laudrup and Stoichkov but Messi is the best I’ve seen. He has evolved in a way that nobody could expect."
"When it comes down to natural talent there’s no one who’s at Messi’s level."
"Messi is better than Maradona; he is more complete, more consistent, more spectacular. He is reinventing the game – a mix of the real and the virtual."
"Messi is better than Maradona and Pelé. Every week he shows that he is capable of things that no one had done until now. Messi defies the laws of anatomy, he must have an extra bone in his ankle."
"I can't believe anyone can have played the game of football as well as Messi."
"I think now he’s probably done more than most players. But he is in the same class as Alfredo de Stefano, Johan Cruyff, Pelé. When he finishes and he retires, he will automatically become one of them. A player that people will talk about forever, while the game of football is as good and as popular as it is. He is a sensational player."
"Messi is simply the best player in the world. Messi is alone in his class as a player, it is impossible that there is another like him."
"Messi is the best player I've ever seen, better than Maradona and Cruyff combined."
"Messi is Maradona every day. He has played at the level of Maradona in 1986 for the past five years."
"I can only repeat what I have already said before and that is that Messi is the best in the world at the moment. It pains me to admit it, but it’s the simple truth."
"Newton and Einstein also had a certain level of autism. I hope that like them, Messi surpasses himself every day and continues giving us his beautiful brand of football."
"What’s really incredible is his consistency. It’s practically inhuman to keep going like him. What Messi has achieved, far outweighs what Cristiano has done."
"When Messi has the ball at his feet he can do things that you can’t imagine."
"There is only one player who is doing things that I could never do and that is Messi."
"He's the great player of this generation, like there were great players in other generations."
"Messi produces more pieces of exceptional skill in a single game than I managed in an entire career."
"Messi is a genius. He has everything. When I watch him I see a player who is very, very skilful, very clever and his left foot is like Diego Maradona's."
"Big congratulations to Messi, the magician, the artist, the genius. What more words can I use to describe this guy? Twenty-seven years old and broken the Champions League record from Raúl. Possibly one of the hardest players I’ve played against in my time in the game. The left foot. It’s beautiful. At the moment this guy’s taking liberties with everyone."
"There's a special part of Messi's brain allowing him to see the split-second chaos of football in his own personal super slow motion."
"Messi is really a different class. To win four consecutive Ballon d'Ors is a great achievement."
"The Messi of the early years was a phenomenon, but he always wanted to finish off the move. Now he goes past one, two or three players and is happy to give an assist to a team-mate - it makes him more dangerous and more difficult to stop than ever before."
"He's the first genius of the 21st century."
"I am not ashamed to admit that in the games against Barcelona I spent a lot of the time just hoping he would take up positions as far away from me as possible."
"I think about the great players with whom I have shared a pitch: Eric Cantona, Zinedine Zidane, Pirlo, Xavi, Cristiano Ronaldo – and the greatest of them all is Messi."
"He's a problem solver, a game changer, the greatest player to have played the game. I am more than 60 years old now, and I don't believe that I've seen, or that I'm likely to see, anyone better in my lifetime. The world's best when I was growing up was Pele and he would have been a great player now, too, but Messi surpasses him. He's also way out ahead of Diego Maradona - it's not even close anymore."
"I was lucky enough to play with Zidane, Ronaldo, Figo, Cristiano... but Messi is different; he makes everything look so easy, so effortless – even the impossible."
"Messi makes the difference. I think he has reached and surpassed the level of Maradona."
"The best by far is Messi. Second is Maradona, third is Pele and Di Stefano. Fifth is Cruyff, Zidane or Pele."
"Not often I sit and watch football and chuckle at how good someone is."
"Messi is the real deal when it comes to No10s. He represents a type of football that transcends borders."
"Messi is the best in the world by far; for me, nobody comes close."
"What Messi does is terrifying. It’s indescribable magic. You can’t analyze it."
"I love Messi. Who doesn't? He's from another planet. An extraordinary player."
"Messi has been the best player of the last 10 years. He played at the same level for 10 years."
"I never ever thought I would say that there was a better player than Maradona since he was in my time and I was in awe of him, but I honestly think for a number of reasons that Messi has surpassed him. He can do anything that Maradona did, and he does it more frequently and consistently."
"He's head and shoulders above anyone I've seen. He's an alien. He's better now than he was four years ago because he reads the game better. He's unstoppable."
"Barcelona have a great team with one special player, Messi. He is able to unlock a game from out of nowhere. Cristiano Ronaldo has been putting in spectacular performances, but there really is no comparison with Messi. Messi is on another level than all the other players. He is the undisputed best. No player has the ability to do what he does."
"He can hurt you 40 metres away from goal, not because he takes the ball and starts dribbling past opponents, but because on top of that he can also create the definitive goal chance. The god of football started playing, he is unstoppable when he starts playing. If you think otherwise, ask Jerome Boateng or all those fantastic players that face him."
"Messi is the best I’ve ever seen. I don’t dish out praise lightly but Messi deserves it. I look for weaknesses in his game and I can’t find them."
"He really is from a different planet. Even if you are supporting another team you have to admit this."
"Messi is the Pelé of my generation. I don't understand the criticism of him. You cannot criticize a player like Messi."
"I heard an interview with Sir Alex Ferguson where he revealed his greatest players of all time. He said Messi was in a category of his own. I am a big fan of Diego Maradona but Messi is a phenomenon. His performances at club level are unbelievable. You can play a season or two like that, but not all these years. He set the bar very high from the start."
"He doesn't have the personality to be a leader."
"Sometimes I ask myself if Messi is human"
"Every player on the planet is in Messi's shadow. If you want to step out of Messi's shadow, you should try another sport."
"I have never seen a player like him, with so much quality and audacity at his age, in a so important a stadium and with that shirt. He has everything. He has an extraordinary future - I'd love to bring him to Juve!"
"When I see Messi - who is the best player in the world in my opinion - lose the ball, he runs off until he gets it back or commits a foul. Our guys lose the ball and fold their arms."
"What Messi brings to a team, no other player can bring."
"If you're speaking of a fantasy player, then it has to be Leo Messi as he is so unpredictable."
"[How to stop Messi?] You need to bring a shotgun, pam-pam and that's it."
"Messi is the best player I’ve seen in my life. Not just better but much better. Much faster. Much, much more skilful."
"I think he is certainly one of the best in the world and people are right to make comparisons with Diego Maradona. It’s amazing when you think he is still only 22-years-old. He’s just a fantastic player."
"Put in the superlatives yourselves, I'm running out. It's already been a while now that he has been outstanding. That he's capable of doing everything that he does at his age is something impressive, that doesn't make any sense."
"Messi has once again shown that he is a wonderful player and that he is, without doubt, the leader of Barcelona. He is the best player in the world and the best in the history of football. Along with Cruyff and Maradona, he is the best player we have seen at Barça."
"Tonight, I saw Diego Maradona, but at more revs per minute. There are no words left to describe him – he is interplanetary. We could have beaten Barcelona but we could never have beaten Leo Messi. If we had scored four, he would have scored 12."
"Messi is like a Playstation."
"You cannot compare anyone to Messi. Cristiano Ronaldo is a great human player, but Messi is a Martian."
"I don't know the parameters for the Ballon d'Or. I only know that Messi deserves to win every trophy."
"Diego Maradona filled us with emotions. But between the cracks, without doubt, Messi is better than Maradona."
"Whoever plays football knows that there are no words for Messi. He is a category all of his own: the best player in the world, another galaxy."
"Messi is like an Oliver Twist character, picking a pocket or two, the Artful Dodger, where he’s just sort of slipping around, looking like a little lad in the playground. He’s not really taking it seriously, and he makes you smile every time he gets the ball. And when he does some of these things, I have to laugh because it’s not possible what he does. It’s wonderful to watch. It’s just wonderful to see. You’ve got to pinch yourself sometimes, it’s really amazing what he does."
"Look at Lionel Messi – he gets kicked every week. Everybody wants to kick Messi because it is the only way to stop him, but all he ever does is sort of smile, get up and get on with it, and then does it again."
"Messi is just a one-off, a freak of nature, who sees and does things nobody else sees or does."
"With respect to Leo, I don’t know what can I say. Nothing surprises me with him. He controls the game well, passes the ball well, he is a good finisher, he can press and recover the ball. He is a footballer that can do everything. He sees passes that most people can only see whilst watching the game on TV or in the stands, not ones that you can normally see on the field."
"When he gets going, he creates panic. You have to have a perfect game to stop him."
"Messi is from another galaxy. Fans get used to it, but what he does is not normal."
"He’s like a kid at school playing against a load of kids who can’t play, it’s incredible. It’s so silly; he’s on another planet, just amazing."
"Of course life is easier with Lionel Messi. He does all sorts of things. We see that every day. He is from another planet."
"I've never seen a better player than Messi. He's so good that he can even get around the three players you send after him and still notice the two teammates he has in space. It'll be hard to ever see another player like him."
"Messi has creativity, imagination, he can go straight for goal... He can pass like nobody else in the world. Messi is in another dimension."
"Messi is best player ever. Some say Pele, Cruyff or Maradona, but none of them was as decisive as Messi."
"Messi is the number one footballer in the world. No other player in the past few years comes close."
"Messi proves himself nearly every game. Despite his immense talent, he remains very modest. I like that in him and I respect Messi a lot."
"I feel sad when the best player in the world is chosen, and I see, for example, that the Portuguese coach—my friend Fernando Santos—does not place Messi among the top three. It's absurd. As a Portuguese man, I will say that Ronaldo is the best in the world. Messi is from another planet."
"Messi's ability to play at the highest level with Barcelona and their consistency is what wins them these titles."
"I applaud what he does and I hope the crowd enjoyed and will remember what he does. We are fortunate to be around while the best is playing. It is a pleasure to have him with us. Today was a real show. He is the best there is and there has been."
"Simply stellar, proud and majestic. He is the re-incarnation of Maradona."
"You can forget the Little Donkey, the Rabbit, the Clown and all the other great pretenders, it's the Flea with the fast feet and fabulous control who gets closest to el Diego. He may not have the same the strutting confidence or the big mouth - in fact, he makes whispering Ted Lowe sound like a town crier - but there's definitely something about Messi."
"I have played against Platini, Maradona, Cruyff and played with George Best — a lot of big names, but none of them has been able to do what Messi does. Two years ago I said that the best player I played against was Maradona and the best player I have played with was Bestie. But I can now say I have never seen a player as good as Messi. He’s in a league of his own."
"They say all men are equal in god's eyes. This player makes you seriously think about those words."
"If he is so good, how can you express that? The superlatives ran out ages ago. On these pages, swearing has been tried. Or perhaps a symbol, something to signify that we have gone beyond words now."
"There are three or four important things in life: books, friends, women, and Messi."
"Are there any adjectives and superlatives left to describe little Leo? Messi is unstoppable and we should feel privileged to be watching a player who may be the best of all time."
"I like Messi because he doesn’t think he’s Messi."
"Here he is again ... here he is again .. that's astonishing, absolutely world-class!"
"Messi saved football. There has never been such an overwhelming, devastating, decisive and unique player."
"At the Camp Nou Messi scored two brilliant goals, made a third and at times yawned his way around champion opponents like a man tactfully avoiding a gaggle of overheated toddlers in a high street coffee shop. Often he took the ball and shimmied past two or three men, operating within a kind of fermata, events slowed and paused around him, and providing a reminder that he remains one of the great dribblers, master of the flip-flap, the surge, the amphetamine-crazed-millipede shift of feet."
"People think I am an admirer of Messi. No, you are all wrong. I am an admirer of genius in football. The greatest footballer that I have ever seen in my life."
"He was beautiful. He was the point of difference. He has always been the point of difference. Unparalleled, and maybe today there will, of course, always be those who argue, always be those who debate. And the debate could rage on if you like. But as he falls in love with the object in the world that his heart most desired, it is hard to escape the supposition that he has rendered himself today, the greatest of all time."