For many, Lionel Messi has been an other-worldly phenomenon throughout his illustrious and trophy-laden career.
A football deity lauded by his millions of disciples and followers around the world, the diminutive Argentine has been the gold standard for two decades, dazzling astounded crowds with his repertoire of silky skills, mazy dribbles, inch-perfect passes and wondrous strikes.
Messi’s genius has never failed to capture the imagination of his fellow professionals, either. The eight-time Ballon d’Or winner has left team-mates, managers and foes awe-struck across his glistening reign as the game’s greatest.
Here are the best quotes about Messi from the footballing world.
“Don’t write about him, don’t try to describe him, just watch him.”
– Pep Guardiola
“Who is the Best Player in the World? Leo Messi. Who is the Best Player Ever? Leo Messi!”
– Arsene Wenger
“Diego [Maradona] filled us with emotions. But between the cracks, without doubt, Messi is better than Maradona.”
– Diego Simeone
“Before a game, you can plan for everything. But Messi can produce a move that no one expects and change the game in an instant.”
– Fabio Capello
“I am saying that a team with that boy is a different team, is a different story.”
– Jose Mourinho
“Leo Messi, I’ve said it probably 500,000 [times] in my life, is probably the best player I’ve seen in my whole life.”
– Jurgen Klopp
“Messi is the best in the world without any doubt and for me [in] the history of football.”
– Luis Enrique
“I watch a lot of football, and people pine on this whole Messi vs [Cristiano] Ronaldo debate; there’s no comparison, for me. Messi is on a different level to everybody else, it’s as simple as that.”
– Sir Alex Ferguson
“I have the privilege. I am honoured to train him and see him play. It’s something exciting because every time you see him play, it’s a huge source of motivation for his team-mates, the people, the whole world.”
– Lionel Scaloni
“Messi is a genius. He was born to be a player.”
– Roberto Mancini
“”It is clear that Messi is on a level above all others. Those who do not see that are blind.”
– Xavi
“Although he may not be human, it’s good that Messi still thinks he is.”
– Javier Mascherano
“He’s well above anything else I’ve ever seen. He’s an alien.”
– Carles Puyol
“We give him the ball and stand back and watch. People often say to me they saw Pele and Maradona play. In the future, I will be able to say I saw Messi play.”
– Thiago Alcantara
“I have never seen anything like Leo Messi. He is a miracle from God!”
– Arda Turan
“When I am an old man I will tell my grandchildren bedtime stories about when I won the Champions League, hopefully when I won the World Cup, but most of all I will tell them that their grandfather used to play with Lionel Messi.”
– Angel Di Maria
“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.”
– Zlatan Ibrahimovic
“What Leo does is so incredible that I have to be careful not to stand still watching him make his moves.”
– Thierry Henry
“It feels good to be in the same generation as him. I believe he’s the best player in the history of the sport.”
– Gerard Pique
“There is no doubt, you’re from another galaxy. Thanks Leo”
– Maxi Rodriguez
“Once they said they can only stop me with a pistol. Today you need a machine gun to stop Messi.”
– Hristo Stoichkov
“I have seen the player who will inherit my place in Argentine football and his name is Messi. Messi is a genius.”
– Diego Maradona
“For the world of soccer, Messi is a treasure because he is a role model for children around 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.”
– Johan Cruyff
“He is a skilled player, gives assists, passes, scores, dribbles well. If we were in the team together, the opponents should worry about two players, not just one! Today, Messi is the most complete player.”
– Pele
“For me to watch Messi is a pleasure – it’s like having an orgasm – it’s an incredible pleasure.”
– Luis Figo
“I played with Romario, Rivaldo, Ronaldo, [Michael] Laudrup and Stoichkov but Messi is the best I’ve seen.”
– Albert Ferrer
“I was a big fan of Maradona growing up and of the current crop Ronaldo is good, but 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.”
– Roy Keane
“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.”
– Tostao
“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.”
– Franz Beckenbauer
“Messi is a once-in-a-generation player. It’s unlikely that any human being will repeat his numbers.”
– Gianluigi Buffon
“He is an amazing player. Magic. Top. As a person, we share the stage for 16 years. Imagine 16 years.”
– Cristiano Ronaldo
“Lionel Messi is quite clearly the best player ever. It’s a pleasure to pit myself against him and when I finish my career it’s something I can look back on and know I’ve tested myself against the very best.”
– John Terry
“The other day I saw one of his games. He was running with the ball at a hundred per cent 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.”
– Raul
“Messi is class. There is him, and then there is the rest. What he does is extraordinary.”
– Franck Ribery
“Who’s better, Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo? Messi. Ronaldo is good, but Messi is ten times better.”
– Klaas-Jan Huntelaar
“He is always going forwards. He never passes the ball backwards or sideways. He has only one idea, to run towards the goal. So as a soccer fan, just enjoy the show.”
– Zinedine Zidane
“Messi is a joke; the best joke my eyes have ever seen.”
– Wayne Rooney
“Is Messi a real player or a PlayStation character?”
– Radamel Falcao
“Messi and football are two things that go together. I enjoy watching him, he does things that nobody does. He has a stature that nobody has, something special for him, everything is special. He’s a player who has football inside him, who feels it, it’s incredible.”
– Paul Pogba
“The only time when I have ever watched a performance where I have been genuinely mesmerised by a player was Messi for the 20 minutes before half-time in the Nou Camp against Manchester City.”
– Gary Neville
