The praise continues to flow for Lionel Messi with current and former teammates expressing their gratitude for his impact on their game.
Argentinian and former Paris Saint-Germain teammate Angel Di Maria has spoken out on how the midfield magician was the ‘best thing’ to happen to his career.
It’s certainly high praise for Messi who hasn’t been short of his plaudits in recent weeks.
Coach Javier Mascherano praised Messi’s MLS impact, which recently saw Messi named the 2024 MLS MVP, and Kylian Mbappe applauded the Argentine for what he had taught him in France.
Messi was unable to defend his FIFA The Best award, but this blow will be softened by the praise of Di Maria.
Di Maria labels Messi ‘best in history’
While Messi is no stranger to receiving the highest praise, Di Maria’s latest comments may have topped any that have come before.
The eight-time Ballon d’Or winner holds numerous records, and Di Maria has explained how big of an impact Messi has had on his career.
Speaking to DSportsRadio, he said: “I’ve said everything about Leo, he was the best thing that happened to me in my career, just like for anyone else playing with Diego. It’s the best, and after so many years, creating a friendship… the kid is phenomenal on and off the pitch.
“I had that chance and I told him after my last game at PSG, ‘thank you for letting me live all this with you’. When he left Barcelona, Lean (Paredes) and I told him to come and play with us. It never happened that I would go to Barcelona, but all I wanted was to live it with him.
“Having it every day for that year was something different. It was the icing on the cake for me.”
Di Maria has been linked with a move to Inter Miami and went on to explain exactly what made Messi so special and why he saw him as the ‘best in history’.
He continued: “The only one I see is the best in history, it is impossible to get higher than that. All the others are far below him.
“Having trained and played with him, seeing every training session, all his preparation, how he wants to win, how he doesn’t like to miss a pass… it’s all in general. It’s difficult to say, but I think Leo gives you all that. He gives you what you want to be as a player.”
Messi and Di Maria’s impressive record
While friendships off the field do not always equate to impressive numbers on it the pair of Messi and Di Maria have combined both.
The pair have teamed up on the international stage with Argentina and at club level with PSG.
In the 142 games the pair have played together they’ve won no fewer than 94 of them, which averages at 2.18 points per game.
Surprisingly the pair have only combined for 16 goals in that time, which given their goalscoring record is rather low.
Despite the below-average goal-scoring combinations the pair have won an impressive amount of trophies as a duo, that’s what counts.
- 1 x World Cup
- 2 x Copa America
- 1 x CONMEBOL-UEFA Cup of Champions
- 1 x Olympic Games
- 1 x FIFA U-20 World Cup
- 1 x French Ligue 1
Herons fans will hope the pair can team up in Miami and increase their combined silverware haul.