It has now been claimed that eight-time Ballon d'Or winner could have been one of the best defenders in the world.
With 46 trophies to his name, Messi has been arguably the best attacker in the world in his hugely successful career.
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However, a former teammate of his both at international and club level has revealed that, on top of Messi's devastating attacking prowess, the 37-year-old was also brilliant at defending.
Former Argentina defender Javier Mascherano has insisted that Messi could have been one of the world's best in that regard.
"If Messi were a defender, he might have been one of the best defenders in the world," he said in an interview with Shoot for Love, as per Spanish outlet SPORT.
"It was impossible to dribble past him. Sometimes in Barcelona, we would play one-on-one, and it was impossible to get past him.
"We had no chance against him. Sometimes, attackers know how to defend. Leo defended very well. He was very fast, and when you tried to dribble past him, it was impossible.
"In Barcelona, we had a short tournament during training with three teams: five victories and you were the champion. He decided to end training early, so he scored five goals for his team to win, and training was over."
Mascherano played together with Messi 414 times during his career, with the Inter Miami star also being his most frequent teammate.
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Elsewhere, Messi has made his return for Argentina in the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers following an injury lay-off that kept him out since the 2024 Copa America in July.
The Albiceleste were held to a 1-1 draw by Venezuela early on Friday morning, but remain in a commanding position to qualify for the World Cup as they top the CONMEBOL qualifying standings after nine matches played.