Lionel Messi has named his top ten ‘favourite’ players that he has played with during his football career at Barcelona, PSG, Inter Miami, and the Argentina national team.
Messi, 37, has continued to impress fans in the US with a staggering 20-goal return from just 19 Major League Soccer (MLS) appearances in 2024. His contributions have helped Inter Miami secure the Leagues Cup and MLS Supporters’ Shield this season.
The Argentines’ hat-trick against the New England Revolution in the Herons’ 6-2 win on October 19 made him the club’s all-time leading scorer – with 33 goals - surpassing teammate Leonardo Campana – on 32 strikes.
Although Campana is one of Messi’s most talented current teammates, the 2022 World Cup winner has had the pleasure of sharing a pitch with some of the best players of the past two decades.
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Former Barcelona teammates Jordi Alba, Sergio Busquets and Luis Suarez have joined Messi in Florida, forming a legendary line-up.
However, there were several other names in Messi’s ‘top ten’.
"I was lucky to play for a long time at Barcelona... with many of the best players," Messi told Titan Sports in 2023.
"Like Ronaldinho, Deco, [Samuel] Eto'o, [Luis] Suarez, Xavi, [Andres] Iniesta, [Sergio] Busquets, I was lucky enough to play with the best players and enjoy the game with them.
“Speaking of which, I almost forgot about Neymar because there are so many people.”
Neymar has spoken highly about Messi in the past despite joining PSG from Barcelona in 2017, with his move to the French capital considered to be an attempt to step out of the Argentine’s shadow by some fans.
Ironically, Messi then joined the Brazilian at PSG in 2022.
"It's a story I tell everyone," Neymar told Globo Esporte in 2019.
"At the time when I needed the most support, the man on the team, the best in the world [Lionel Messi], came and gave me love."
Messi continued naming several other world-class footballers in his list.
"There must be many players I forgot to mention,” Messi added.
“I've been lucky enough to play with the best players, with the best strikers.
“Like Neymar, [Samuel] Eto'o, [Luis] Suarez, [Zlatan] Ibrahimovic and [David] Villa and many more.
"I've been comfortable playing with all of them, or almost all of them, because I've been lucky enough to play with the best of them... playing with them is easy.”
The eight-time Ballon d’Or winner also waxed lyrical about former Barcelona boss Pep Guardiola.
"He's [Pep Guardiola] the best coach in the world although, for me, he didn't have to win this Champions League [in 2023] to prove it, but [it is] an achievement he deserves."
Topics: Lionel Messi, Barcelona, PSG, Inter Miami, Argentina, Football
Luke Davies