Lionel Messi, arguably the greatest footballer to play the game has achieved almost everything on the field. He has scored over 400 goals for Barcelona and more than 40 goals for Argentina. He has won 4 Ballon d’or the most number of times along with FIFA player of the year and many other trophies. Messi has been very humble off the field as well due to this most of the Football fanatics and legends praise him highly. Here are some famous quotes on Lionel Messi.

Famous Quotes on Messi

1. Diego Maradona– “I have seen the player who will inherit my place in Argentine Football and his name is Messi. Messi is a genius and he can become an even better player.”

2. Pele- “I like Messi a lot, he’s a great player. Technically, we’re practically at the same level.”

3. Luis Enrique- “Messi is the best in the world without any doubt and for me the history of football.”

4. Zlatan Ibrahimovic- “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.”

5. Frank Rijkaard– “He’s a unique player and he deserves it, because he can do things of almost imperceptible excellence and is a gem to watch.”

6. Hristo Stoichkov- “Once they said they can only stop me with a pistol. Today you need a machine gun to stop Messi.”

7. Frank Rijkaard-“Leo’s goals are works of art.”

8. Romario- “Newton and Einstein had a certain level of autism – I hope that, like them, Messi surpasses himself every day and continues to give us his beautiful brand of football.”

9. Pep Guardiola– “Don’t write about him. Don’t try to describe him. Watch him.”

10. Arsene Wenger- “Who is the Best Player in the World? Leo Messi. Who is the Best Player Ever? Leo Messi.”

11. Luis Figo- “For me, to watch Messi play is a pleasure – it’s like having an orgasm – it’s an incredible pleasure.”

12. Michael Owen- “I can’t believe anyone can have played the game of football as well as Messi.”

13. Diego Maradona– “His potential is limitless and I think he’s got everything it takes to become Argentina’s greatest player.”

14. Arsene Wenger– “Messi is a Playstation.”

15. Gilberto- “Messi’s plaudits are hard to accept, we play in other countries and we do not see the local fans supporting our players there. Over 40 thousand Brazilians applauded, and that’s hard for who is on the field. When I see them applauding Messi I get annoyed.”

16. Kobe Bryant- “I wear the number 10 Jersey for the US National Team in honour of the Greatest athlete I have ever seen: Messi.” Note: Kobe Bryant is a basketball player.

17. Jose Mourinho- “The best way to stop Messi is when you play with 11 men and then you can double mark him, one player to stay on him and the other to help out. If it is 11 against 10 then you have almost no chance of stopping him.”

18. Fernando Gago- “For me, the best in the world is Messi because of the way he plays, moves with the ball and changes matches, Messi has incredible ability and I love the way that he plays.”

19. Raul- “The other day I saw one of his games. He was running with the ball at a hundred percent 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.”

20. Bacary Sagna- “He is the best in the world. Football seems easy when he plays it.”

21. Pep Guardiola– “The best players are always in the thick of the action. Jordan did it with the Bulls, Bryant does it with the Lakers and Leo does it here. We want him to stay with us because he is the best and doesn’t want swap him with anyone.”

22. Fernando Gago– “Messi is the best player in the world by some way, I always thank God that he is an Argentine, not just as a player, but as a person too. I have known him since I was 18, he is incredible, a very good person and we are very good friends. Right now, he is at another club, and we have a little bit of a rivalry, but the friendship is larger and stronger.”

23. Maxi Rodriguez- “There is no doubt, you’re from another galaxy. Thanks Leo.”

24. Thierry Henry- “I have the possibility to watch Messi in training each morning, and because of what he demonstrates he is the best player in the world, he stated during a press conference. It is a pleasure to watch him, and because of the way he plays he is an undisputed leader of the Barcelona team.”

25. Javier Mascherano- “Although he may not be human, it’s good that Messi still thinks he is.”

26. Thierry Henry- “What Leo does is so incredible that I have to be careful not to stand still watching him make his moves.”

27. Johan Cruyff- “For the world of football, Messi is a treasure because he is 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.”

28. Julio Grondona- “Without Messi there isn’t a team for Argentina, Messi is brilliant, different, with a strong mentality. Let’s hope he doesn’t change.” 

29. Pele- “I knew when we gave Kaka the FIFA World Player of the Year award that he (Messi) would become the best player in the world. With young people like him we need patience and that is the problem we have in Brazil.”

30. Sandro Rosell- “Barca will never have a player like Messi again. Messi’s greatness is present on and off the field of play.” Note: Sandro Rosell is former Barcelona President.

31. Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva( Brazilian president)- “When I see Messi – who is the best player in the world in my opinion – lose the ball, he runs off until he gets it back or commits a foul. Our guys lose the ball and fold their arms.”

32. Carles Puyol- “He is a spectacular player, there is nobody else like him. I should not because I have suffered so much in training. I think he is the best forward at the moment and I think he will be so for many more years. He has his feet on the ground.”

33. Cesc Fabregas- “He has a great future if he can stay clear of injuries. For me, he is the best there is.”

34. Radamel Falcao- “Is Messi a real player or a PlayStation character?”

35. Ronaldinho- “Every time he plays, Leo Messi reminds me more of Maradona, both left-footed and short, Messi is the best player in the world, along with Kaká and Cristiano Ronaldo. For us it is not a surprise. Since he began to come and train with us and we knew we would go down this path. Someday I will explain that I was at the birth of one of the footballing greats: Leo Messi.”

36. Zinedine Zidane- “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 football fan, just enjoy the show.”

37. Dani Alves– “Lionel Messi? When I played against him at Sevilla it was always very difficult, so now I’m pleased that we’re on the same side. He’s just fantastic.”

38. Mikel Arteta- “It is as if someone commands him from the stands, like a video game. I have never seen a human run with the ball at that speed. I have not seen Maradona so I cannot compare, but Messi is simply unbeatable.”

39. Carlos Bilardo- “Messi defies the laws of anatomy, he must have an extra bone in his ankle.”

40 Franck Ribery- “Messi is class. There is him, and then there is the rest. What he does is extraordinary.”

41. Raul- “The other day I saw one of his games. He was running with the ball at a hundred percent 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!”

42. Xavi- “It is clear that Messi is on a level above all others. Those who do not see that are blind.”

43. Johnny Heitinga– “I believe that I played well against Barcelona, the problem was that Lionel Messi was simply unstoppable.”

44. Carlos Tevez– “His speed is astonishing. It’s amazing how he can go from 1 to 100 in just one second. I’m constantly around great players like Cristiano and Rooney but this guy Is just a step above every other great footballer out there at the moment.”

45. ADIDAS– “When you have won 4 Ballon d’or awards #therewillbehaters.”

46. Pep Guardiola– “He is only 27 years old and he has already beaten the record. His record will not last for 60 years, but 600 years.”

47. Samuel Eto’o- “Messi is God, as a person and even more as a player. I knew him when he was a boy and I’ve watched him grow. He deserves it all.”

48. Fran Escriba- “Messi is so good that he can even get around the 3 players you send after him & still notice the 2 teammates he has in space.”

49. Pep Guardiola– “There is no defence that can stop Messi. It is impossible.”

50. Marcelo Lippi- “The best? Messi.”

51. Sergio Ramos- “Since the first time I saw him play I have always said he surprised me, and he has done every day since.”

52. Ander Herrera- “I’m not sure he’s human.”

53. Radamel Falcao- “Was it a game of UCL or Messi in a PlayStation game? Impossible! If he scores 6 goals can he take home 2 balls?”

54. Gianluigi Buffon- “I just wanted to make sure that he is a human being like us.”

55. Angel di Maria- “My friendship with Leo is very good and it makes me very happy to wear the same shirt as the best player in the world, to be able to play alongside him and be his friend. It is something I will never forget.”

56. Diego Simeone- “Messi is the number one. No other player is close to him.”

57. Radomir Antic- “Messi is the Mozart of football.”

58. John Terry- “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.”

59. Neymar- “It is impossible to beat him. He is the best and I’m always at his side to learn from him.”

60. Sergio Busquets- “Having Messi in the team guarantees everything. He doesn’t just score, he gives assists, and he works and wins the ball. He is the best player in the world.”

61. Luis Enrique- “We are used to Messi showing us that he is a player from another Dimension.”

62. Eduardo Galeano- “I like Messi because he doesn’t think he is Messi.”

63. Antonio Lobo Antunes- “There are three or four important things in life: books, friends, women… and Messi.”

64. Victoria Azarenka- “Seeing Messi play is like watching a video game.” Note: Victoria Azarenka is a tennis player.

Most of the quotes have a common sense is that he is the best player in world. And we can say this after all he has achieved in the career. And what does Messi have to say about himself?

Messi- “Diego is Diego. For me he is the greatest player of all time. Even after a million years I’m not even going to be close to Maradona. I have no intention of comparing myself to Maradona- I want to make my own history for something I have achieved.”