Lionel Messi has once again reaffirmed his admiration for Pep Guardiola, declaring the Spanish tactician to be unique in football history.
Inter Miami star Lionel Messi has praised his former coach Pep Guardiola in an exclusive interview with ESPN, stating, “He is different, unique, complete and the best!”
Lionel Messi has once again reaffirmed his admiration for Pep Guardiola. In an exclusive interview with ESPN, the Argentine superstar described his former Barcelona boss as “different” and considered Guardiola to be the best coach he has ever met.
The full interview will be released soon. However, in an excerpt, Messi revealed that Guardiola, who is currently in charge of Manchester City, is a special figure in the coaching world.
“For me, Pep Guardiola is unique,” said Lionel Messi. “There are many good coaches, but he has something different. I think he is the best of them all.”
Praise for Pep Guardiola
Messi was a key pillar in Barcelona’s golden era under Pep Guardiola, from 2008 to 2012, when the Catalan club won 14 major trophies. Despite working with a number of different coaches throughout his career, Messi still regards Guardiola as the most complete.
“In terms of reading the game, preparing the team and communicating with the players, Pep Guardiola is very complete,” added Messi. “He is the best, and we were lucky to have him at Barcelona. When Pep Guardiola arrived, the structure of the team and the quality of the players combined perfectly to create everything we achieved later.”
Lionel Messi added that he admires not only Pep Guardiola’s achievements but also the mark he has left on the pitch in many different competitions.
“Pep Guardiola goes elsewhere and still wins,” Messi said, “It’s not just about titles, it’s about the way his teams play. At Bayern Munich, even though he didn’t win the Champions League, he changed the way football is played in Germany. He did the same in England with Man City, he changed the way the Premier League is played.”
Lionel Messi insists Pep Guardiola is unique in the history of football. PHOTO: AFP
2. Ambition to defend the World Cup
Pep Guardiola has won the Bundesliga title in every season with Bayern Munich, including two German Cups. Since moving to Manchester City in 2016, the 54-year-old has won 18 trophies, including six Premier League titles and a Champions League. He recently reached a career milestone: 1,000 games as a manager.
Messi, meanwhile, has now turned his focus to defending his World Cup title with Argentina next year. La Albiceleste will go to the 2026 World Cup in the United States, Mexico and Canada as champions, having won the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
“This group of players will try again, give their all and fight,” Lionel Messi said. “But small details can also make you fail.”
Messi reflects on the World Cup
Messi, now 38, has played in five World Cups. The eight-time Ballon d’Or winner finally lifted the trophy after Argentina beat France on penalties in 2022. However, Argentina’s road to the title was not always smooth, including a surprise 2-1 loss to Saudi Arabia in their opening match.
“The World Cup is really difficult,” Messi said. “Any team can make things difficult for you, even eliminate you. The ball can hit the post and go in, or it can bounce out. You can lose on penalties.
“At the last World Cup, although we played better against the Netherlands and France, we still had to go to penalties, and there we were lucky to have a ‘monster’ like Dibu Martinez. But you can still lose in a penalty shootout,” the Argentina captain added.
The 2026 World Cup group stage draw will take place at 0:00 tomorrow, December 6, in Washington DC (USA).