Since taking over at the helm of the national side ‘Checho’ has consistently pointed out the merits of the Barcelona star; and as he prepared to lead the domestically-based squad into Wednesday’s friendly with Venezuela, the tactician had no qualms about putting ‘La Pulga’ at the top of the current generation of superstars.
“Messi is on the way to becoming the best footballer in history. If one looks into the future, Lionel has everything,” Batista told reporters at Monday’s press conference; before making allowances for another legendary number 10.
“Maradona was one of the greatest, without a doubt. But Messi right now is the best in the world and we have to take advantage of that fact.”
Messi and Argentina are next in action in two friendlies scheduled for the end of March, where they will measure themselves against the United States and Costa Rica. Batista affirmed that Velez’s Juan Manuel Martinez dropped out after a penalty-winning cameo against Portugal because of an injury sustained back in Argentina.
Continuing on the subject of locally-based players, ‘Checho’ affirmed that Racing Club’s promising Ivan Pillud had forced himself in the picture to succeed Javier Zanetti in the national team, telling the conference that “Pillud is the natural replacement for Zanetti.” He also surprisingly mentioned Riquelme, asserting that the Boca Juniors number 10 was still in consideration when fit.
“He has always been in my head. We will have to see how he is, how he arrives. If he is feeling 10 out of 10 you have to keep him in mind,” Roman’s former coach in the 2008 Olympic Games gold-medal team asserted.
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Sergio Batista: Lionel Messi Is The Best In The World Today