Barcelona boss Pep Guardiola has sung the praises of Lionel Messi after he led his side to a 3-0 win over Atletico Madrid on Saturday.
The Argentine struck a hat-trick in the win, which was Barca’s 16th La Liga victory in succession.
The win saw Barcelona break the record of 15 league wins in a row, set by the Real Madrid side of 1960-1961.
“We wouldn’t be what we are without Messi,” Guardiola said after the match.
“Without him we would be a good team, but he makes the difference.”
“All of the great teams in history have a player who is different and Messi is one of those – he makes the difference.”
Messi was typically modest after the match, despite the fact his hat-trick saw him move ahead of Cristiano Ronaldo in the La Liga scoring charts, with the striker having now netted 24 goals this season.
“It’s what least concerns me,” Messi said.
“The important thing is to keep our run going and keep working hard because Madrid will always be close.”
But even if Messi was unwilling to talk himself up, Atletico Madrid boss Quique Sanchez Flores was in no doubt who the best player in Spain is.
“He is the number one,” Sanchez Flores said.
“He plays how he wants to and where he wants to – I haven’t seen anything like it.”
“Out of everything he did tonight, what most impressed me was the tackle he made in front of the benches, when he ran back (to dispossess Sergio Aguero) and won the ball.”
“He even does that; he has everything.”
Barcelona are now 10 points in front of title rivals Real Madrid, who face Real Sociedad on Sunday at the Santiago Bernabeu.
Sun 6 February, 2011
