Lionel Messi was called a “force of nature” by Barcelona legend Hristo Stoichkov in a 2010 interview, and he claimed that opponents needed nothing less than a machine gun to stop him.
In the second leg of Barcelona’s 6-3 aggregate victory over Arsenal in the 2009-10 Champions League quarterfinals, Lionel Messi scored a whopping four goals. Barcelona prevailed 4-1 at Camp Nou, despite a 2-2 draw in the first leg at the Emirates Stadium thanks to Messi’s brilliant play.
Messi brought his extraordinary performance to Real Madrid’s Santiago Bernabeu Stadium four days after his masterclass at Camp Nou. The Blaugrana prevailed 2-0 over their most formidable rivals thanks to him scoring the game’s opening goal. Stoichkov, a former European Footballer of the Year, hailed the Barcelona record scorer as unstoppable after the game.
According to what Stoichkov told Bulgarian Trud Daily (via Evening Standard), “Once they said they can only stop me with a pistol, but today you need a machine gun to stop him.”
Stoichkov criticized Real Madrid’s performance after being a key member of Johan Cruyff’s Barca team that won four consecutive La Liga titles in the 1990s.
“Some were kicking like jackasses, others were playing football. He continued, “Money doesn’t play football.” Real’s hundreds of millions were insufficient for a single objective.
Lionel Messi played 53 games for Barcelona across all competitions in 2009-10, scoring 47 goals and providing 12 assists. His remarkable campaign helped him win the Ballon d’Or for the second time in a row.
Lionel Messi is of the opinion that PSG can defeat Bayern Munich:
Lionel Messi, a superstar for Paris Saint-Germain (PSG), has stated that his team can eliminate Bayern Munich, a six-time champion, from the UEFA Champions League. His remarks were made in an interview with PSG TV before PSG’s Round-of-16 matchup with Bayern Munich’s return leg.
Kingsley Coman’s goal was all that separated the two teams in the first leg, which the Parisians lost 1-0 at home. Messi thinks that PSG have what it takes to beat Bayern at the Allianz Arena on Wednesday night (8 March) and get the result they need.
It will be a very difficult game in which minute details will determine the outcome. At this stadium, it’s hard to win. However, I believe we are well-prepare and capable of resolving the issue. Messi stated, “We’ll go to Munich with this intention,” via PSG TV.
Neymar won’t be with PSG for the crucial second leg. The Brazilian will miss the remainder of the 2022-23 season due to scheduled ankle surgery.