- Lionel Messi named his ultimate XI of players from past teammates during his career.
- Andres Iniesta, Xavi and Carles Puyol, who all played with Messi at Barcelona, feature in the team.
- However, Messi opted not to include Thierry Henry, Gerard Pique or Sergio Busquets.
Undoubtedly one of, if not the best player in the history of football, Lionel Messi is a name synonymous with every fan of the sport. A World Cup to his name alongside eight Ballon d’Ors, four Champions League titles and countless more in terms of achievements, the Argentinian has effectively completed all there is to the game, and with that in mind, his opinion on football consequently holds a lot of value.
The former Barcelona icon was previously asked to name his ultimate XI of past teammates by Goal Arabia, via Mundo Deportivo. Having played with a number of exceptional footballers in the past, the talent pool he could choose from was imaginably vast, both in number and quality. Many of his former Barcelona teammates made the cut, though some big names surprisingly missed out, but nonetheless, the talent levels in this theoretical set-up are through the roof regardless.
| Messi’s All-Time Teammates XI | |
|---|---|
| Position | Player |
| GK | Marc-Andre ter Stegen |
| RB | Dani Alves |
| CB | Javier Mascherano |
| CB | Carles Puyol |
| LB | Jordi Alba |
| MF | Xavi Hernandez |
| MF | Andres Iniesta |
| MF | Ronaldinho |
| FW | Neymar |
| FW | Luis Suarez |
| FW | Kylian Mbappe |
Goalkeeper & Defence
Ter Stegen, Alves, Mascherano, Puyol and Alba
Messi gave his former Culers teammate and German international, Marc-Andre ter Stegen, the nod to man the posts – quite surprisingly, in fact, given the Inter Miami man has previously shared a dressing room with Victor Valdes through three Champions League triumphs.
Coming as less of a shock was his chosen full-back pairing of Dani Alves and Jordi Alba for the right and left respectively. The former and Messi in particular shared an almost telepathic relationship down the right flank, which was a vital aspect to many of Barcelona’s most successful years. Alba starred on the opposite side during Messi’s years at the Camp Nou, and the duo have also enjoyed a reunion in Miami as well.
As for the centre-backs, Javier Mascherano and Carles Puyol complete an all-Barcelona defense, though the former likely made his way into the team partly due to his pivotal role for Argentina. Spaniard, Gerard Pique, misses out in expense due to this, however.
Midfield
Xavi, Iniesta, Ronaldinho
The midfield selections should really go without saying, particularly with iconic Spanish duo, Xavi and Andres Iniesta making the cut. The two stars famously shared the 2010 Ballon d’Or podium with Messi, epitomizing the trio’s dominance over the entire sport during that year. Moreover, words from the forward himself described perfectly the vibrancy that these two midfielders brought on the pitch.
“Andrés and Xavi are unique; they made the game more colorful and brought more possession.”
The man to join the two is none other than Ronaldinho. Of course, it was the Brazilian who assisted Messi for his first ever goal in a Barcelona shirt, and the partnership combined for a further eight goals after. It does mean that Sergio Busquets misses out, but it’s hard to find space for him when the trio selected are as good as this.
Forwards
Neymar, Suarez, Mbappe
Completing the forever-iconic “MSN” attacking trio, which may well be the greatest front three in football history, is of course, Neymar and Luis Suarez. Messi chose both for his XI of the best teammates, and rightly so – few other forwards in their generation were capable of terrorizing defenses to such a level.
Messi later reunited with Neymar for a brief spell at Paris Saint-Germain, before his move to the MLS. Very soon, he then linked up with Suarez again, and the duo have been tearing apart American defenses, totaling a combined 48 goals and 25 assists in all competitions for Inter Miami.
Without Messi himself in his ultimate XI, there remains one free spot in the attack, and it surprisingly isn’t Arsenal icon, Thierry Henry, joining Neymar and Suarez. The Frenchman swapped life in England for Spain in 2007, where he later played a vital role in his side’s treble-winning season in 2008/09, where he, Messi and Samuel Eto’o amassed a colossal 100 goals between the three.
Despite Henry’s outstanding achievements alongside Messi, the Argentinian instead opted for the modern prodigy, Kylian Mbappe, instead. In what may well have been among the greatest and most entertaining football matches in football history, the two went head-to-head in the 2022 World Cup final. This six-goal thriller saw Messi and Mbappe score a combined five as both went back and forth in a real battle of the ages. Even when they weren’t sharing a pitch, the competition was still strong, as was evident from Mbappe’s thoughts on the race for the European Golden Shoe in the 2018/19 season:
“I saw that I could maybe get this title of the top goalscorer in Europe. But, facing off against me, was Messi. I would score twice on a weekend, he would go and score three; I would score three, he would score four!”
Regardless of the healthy rivalry, there has always been a mutual respect between the two stars, and Messi has often heaped praise on his former PSG teammate.
“Kylian is a different player, a beast who is very strong in one-on-one, who goes into space, who is very fast, who scores a lot of goals. He is a complete player and he has proved it for years, and in the years to come, he will certainly be among the best.”
All statistics courtesy of Transfermarkt and correct as of 03/12/24
