What happened when Lionel Messi and Diego Maradona played on the same team for the one and only time in all-star charity match

Diego Maradona and Lionel Messi, two of the greatest footballers of all time, shared the pitch together when they took part in an Argentina All Stars charity match.

Back in 2005, a fresh-faced Messi had already helped Barcelona end their six-year wait for the La Liga title, making seven appearances in what was an impressive campaign for the Catalan giants.

The 18-year-old was starting to show his brilliance and was, like many before him, being compared to Diego Maradona, the former Boca Juniors and Napoli forward who spent two years at Barca.

And anyone who wanted to see how they compared got the chance in 2005, when the teenager linked up with a 45-year-old Maradona for a charity match involving the Argentina All Stars.

The likes of Sergio Aguero, Diego Simeone and Juan Sebastian Veron were also involved, but it was the link up play between the two incredible 'number 10s' that really captured the imagination.

As you can see from the clip above, It's clear that the two men were on the same wavelength with passes, one-twos, and flicks that are difficult to deal with.

Not everything is perfect, but with a bit more time together, it is easy to see how incredible the two men playing together would have been.

It's especially impressive when you consider one man was way past his prime and the other several years before it.

The pair played other charity matches together, with the most recent being in 2016, but the first time is the closest to a fully functioning Maradona fans got to see partner with Messi.

Of course the two men would work together again as the Napoli legend took on the job as Argentina manager between 2008 and 2010.

Martin Palermo's injury time penalty in Argentina's penultimate game of the 2010 World Cup qualifying against Peru, followed by Mario Bolatti's 84th minute winner in the final game against Uruguay meant the side just snuck through to the finals in South Africa.

The South Americans breezed through their group before beating Mexico 3-1 in the second round. However in the quarters they were embarrassed by a 4-0 win for Germany and Maradona was soon sacked.

More than a decade later and Messi would follow in the footsteps of the late Maradona in lifting the World Cup with Argentina, 36 years after he did in Mexico back in 1986.

After scoring twice in the final, which Argentina won 4-2 on penalties after an enthralling 3-3 draw at the Lusail Stadium, Messi recreated the iconic image of Maradona when he was hoisted on his teammate's shoulders with the World Cup trophy in hand.