Lionel Messi will be the main star of this FIFA World Cup, according to England legends Joe Cole and Peter Crouch.
But while they believe he will shine on the big stage, they feel it’ll be their South American counterparts Brazil who will be lifting the Jules Rimet Trophy in Qatar.
Cole and Crouch, who have both scored goals for England at a FIFA World Cup, discussed all the key questions ahead of the tournament on LADbible’s Agree To Disagree with FIFA 23 and PlayStation, while also talking about topics such as past England managers Sven Goran-Eriksson and Fabio Capello.
Argentina and Messi head to the tournament on a 35-game unbeaten run which stretches back to July 2019, and while they believe his quality will come through once again, they are unsure whether they can go all the way.
“Has he proven it in the World Cup? Maradona dragged Argentina to World Cups,” said Crouch
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“I say drag, they still had some good players, but he’s won the World Cup – is he seen as a failure if he doesn’t win the World Cup?”
“There’s obviously Benzema, Mbappe – there’s easily players who can be player of the tournament but a safe bet is Messi. Regardless if they win it or not, he could easily be Golden Boot and best player of the tournament.”
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Cole added: “If they don’t win the tournament it just leaves the [greatest player] argument open. If Argentina wins the World Cup and Messi stars it’s pretty much done,” he said.
“This season he’s hit the ground running, he’s in-form, they haven’t lost in 35 games. Regardless of whether they win it, I still feel he’ll perform and he’ll be the best player.”
Both Cole and Crouch had no doubt though that Brazil have the attacking flair to win a sixth World Cup.
“They have an incredible squad right the way through,” said Crouch. “We are so focused on our nation that you forget how strong all these other nations are. I can’t strongly agree because there are other great teams, but you can’t bet against them.”
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Cole added: “I’ve been really confident with England for months about doing it and then just reeling off the Brazil squad, my confidence was going down and down and wondering how they will stop him.”
On England’s chances in Qatar, both believe it will be a successful tournament, but feel some other nations could just have a bit too much for Gareth Southgate’s side.
“For the tournament to be a success they at least have to reach a semi-final or final,” said Crouch.
“That’s so difficult for me to say and not what people want to hear but Gareth Southgate has done an amazing job. I just think there’s some top teams out there and I feel we need to view the semi-final as a success.”
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Cole remarked: “You expect us to get out of the group and I think we will come into the tournament as it goes along. I think we need to be brave, we just need to keep on that wave of semi-finals and finals. I’m optimistic and I strongly agree we are going to do it this year.”
To view the full Agree To Disagree episode with Crouch and Cole, click here.
You can play as EA SPORTS FIFA Ultimate Team Icons Joe Cole and Peter Crouch on FIFA 23 with PlayStation
Thomas Thorn