Lionel Messi’s outstanding performance at the 2026 World Cup has drawn high praise from his former Barcelona teammate Gerard Piqué. The 2010 World Cup-winning center-back believes that Messi’s performance in his sixth World Cup, at the age of 39, has once again established his superiority in the history of the game.
“I think Messi has proven once again that he is the best player in history with this World Cup,” Piqué said. “He scored a lot of goals and took the team to another final. In the end, they didn’t win the title, but I’m sure he will be proud of what he achieved.”
Piqué made the comments in an interview with Spanish media outlet ESPN. Despite losing to Spain in the World Cup final, Messi played brilliantly throughout the tournament. He scored 8 goals, provided 4 assists, and played in all of the team’s matches, starting 7 of them.
Piqué didn’t just talk about Messi’s recent performances for the Argentine national team — he also touched on Messi’s long-standing rivalry with Cristiano Ronaldo. He said, “Over the last 15-20 years, Messi and Cristiano have presented a great rivalry, representing two completely different styles of football. Now, of course, both of them are in the final stages of their careers. Yet we’ve seen at this World Cup that they are still capable of extraordinary performances.”
Messi and Piqué both came through Barcelona’s famous La Masia academy and played together during the club’s golden era, forming a close friendship along the way. However, various reports at the time suggested that their relationship cooled somewhat after Messi left Barcelona in 2021. According to Spanish journalist Juan Yrigoyen, Piqué advised club authorities to comply with Barcelona’s Financial Fair Play obligations during the club’s financial crisis, suggesting that Messi’s departure could help improve the club’s finances. However, neither Messi nor Piqué has ever commented publicly on the matter.
