Lionel Messi has never played in the Premier League – but he has still managed to embarrass England’s finest on a regular basis during his glittering career.
Despite winning seven Ballons d’Or in his career, some have suggested that the Argentina captain would have struggled with the physical demands of English football.
When Messi was linked with a move to Manchester City in 2020, Emmanuel Petit came out and said: “Honestly, I don’t think he’s suited to the intensity of England.
“He doesn’t like being closed down and being fought. In Spain, he’s protected… Messi is not Cristiano Ronaldo. Physically, he’s not the same machine. Ronaldo is a monster.”
Petit is not the only pundit or ex-pro to mindlessly blurt out that sort of argument. But Messi’s record suggests he probably would have been fine.
Messi has faced English opposition on 37 occasions – all of them in the Champions League – and has scored 27 times while providing six assists.
None of England’s elite clubs have been spared; think of his sumptuous 2019 free-kick against Liverpool, bossing Manchester United in the 2009 and 2011 Champions League finals or causing Chelsea defender Asier Del Horno to short-circuit back in 2006.
Messi has scored more goals against Arsenal, Manchester City, Chelsea and Manchester United than his great rival Cristiano Ronaldo – which is remarkable considering Ronaldo has spent six-and-a-half years of his career in the Premier League.
As this brilliant, four-minute compilation of Messi nutmegging some of the Premier League’s best and brightest players makes clear, he definitely could have done it on a rainy Tuesday night in Stoke.
In fact, he manages to ‘meg a player (or sometimes several players) from all of Manchester City, Manchester United, Arsenal, Liverpool and Chelsea in this video. Of the big six, only Spurs are spared, though there is a cheeky little appearance for Leicester and Marc Albrighton at the end.
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