Lionel Messi was informed by Zinedine Zidane, the legend of Real Madrid and France, that he wishes he had played alongside the legendary player from Barcelona at some time in his career.
Zidane only faced Messi once in his incredible playing career, in 2005, and that was when he saw the qualities that would make him the 2022 World Cup champion. The Argentine earned an assist on the day as Madrid lost 3-0 to Barcelona in La Liga, with the great Frenchman on the losing side. But the two great players never really played together; they were more frequently competitors.
Zidane has acknowledged that he would have liked to play alongside the Inter Miami sensation on the pitch. He said in the chat facilitated by adidas: “It’s a pity that we couldn’t play together. This is the moment for me to pass you the ball. Today is a very important day for me because I can tell him how much I admire him… I think he is magic, pure magic.”
At that point, Messi returned the praise, saying: “I have always admired him and liked him a lot. I followed him a lot in Madrid. And he made me suffer a lot too because I was from Barcelona!”
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THE BIGGER PICTURE: The two struck up an interesting discussion covering a wide range of subjects. They talked about the feeling of scoring a goal for their nation in the World Cup final. They also touched upon the kind of respect the Argentine has for the late great Diego Maradona, as well as the lack of number tens in world football at the moment.
IN TWO PHOTOS:
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Getty
WHAT NEXT? Messi will be involved with Inter Miami on Friday when Inter Miami play New York City in the Noche d’Or friendly, a celebration of Messi’s eighth Ballon d’Or win.
