Former Manchester United attacker Antonio Valencia has lavished praise on Lionel Messi, calling him 'unique' and 'one of the best in history'. The Ecuadorian international has locked horns with the former Barcelona ace a few times for both club and country.
While he rarely came out on top in their duels, Valencia has nothing but admiration for Messi, who he feels is among the greatest players ever. Speaking to Argentine sports outlet Ole, he said:
"Messi is unique; he is touched by God, and we must recognise it. When a player stands out, I like to recognise him, and for me, Messi is one of the best in history. At the time of the Cristiano-Messi rivalry, the bad thing about Cristiano was that Messi was also there."
For his incredible achievements with club and country, the Argentine has been widely hailed as the greatest of all time. During his 17 years at Barcelona, he scored 672 goals and lifted 34 titles. He also ended his international trophy drought last year, winning the Copa America with Argentina.
Messi has now clicked into gear at PSG following a difficult first season - in four matches this season, Messi has already racked up four goals and one trophy.
His arch-rival, Ronaldo, has hotly contested the 'GOAT' debate and has his own set of followers, but things haven't been going great for him lately.
The Portuguese ace is facing an uncertain future at Manchester United right now and hasn't scored a single goal in their new campaign so far.
Former Manchester United star hoping to see Messi shine in Qatar
Lionel Messi will be leading Argentina at the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar this year. Given he's 35 now, it might as well be his last appearance in the quadrennial competition.
Valencia hopes the PSG ace will have a good one and that everyone will enjoy watching him in the competition for perhaps the last time.
He added:
"Hopefully Messi has a good World Cup because it could be the last. I hope you enjoy it and also make all the people of Argentina happy."
Argentina have been drawn in Group C alongside Saudi Arabia, Mexico and Poland. They will begin their World Cup campaign on November 22 against the Green Falcons.
Captain5311
249
A true football ⚽️ fan will not pass without liking the King 👑
nowhereee
152
CEO of Google With CEO of Football 🔥👏
nowhereee
99
Guinness World Records knows football.👏🔥
JoyNg
36
Both are GOATS🐐🐐🐐 Appreciate them rather than compare✌🔥🔥
Football⚽/Fan
34
Whether you are a big club manager or a big club legend or a big club caption, you have to accept the legacy of Leo Messi, a player who comes once in 100 years. When your rival best players, legends, coaches, captains respect the GOAT, the whole world must respect the GOAT...
Pok3rfac3
30
OH A RANDOM MANCHESTER POST. LET ME TELL EVERYONE THAT THIS FINISHED PLAYER WHO IS BEING BENCHED FOR 20 YEAR OLD ELANGA IS THE GREATEST OF ALL TIME BECAUSE I THINK SO. WHAT A D!KR!DER 🐴 🐴
Holuseyi
26
Messi from another planet
HonestCr7FaN
22
We all know both Messi and Ronaldo get GOAT shouts, but have they done anything to prove it? For Ronaldo, he was clearly seen to eat grass in the middle of a game, which strongly justified the GOAT shouts he receives. Has Messi ever done anything like this to justify his GOAT shouts. NEVER. Cr7 G0at for a reason. 👌
Rex004
20
Gold would have been the most precious thing if not for Diamond, Ronaldo would have been the Goat if not for Messi... Ronaldo is sincerely a great player but just unlucky to exist in the Messi's Era.
nowhereee
20
Our legends are getting old. Messi Ronaldo era will soon comes to an end. So I request both fanbase to stop the hate and watch Messi plays since Ronaldo is benched.