WON MAN TEAMS
Messi and Lewandowski go head to head in battle of the Euro heavyweights
THEY are the Champions League heavyweights heading for a quarter-final showdown in Lisbon.
This is as much about Lionel Messi against Robert Lewandowski as Barcelona facing Bayern Munich which many neutrals believe should be the dream European final.
Barcelona superstar Messi, 33, is the driving force behind his faltering team’s push for glory as, no matter their failings and weaknesses, they can always count on him to deliver in the Champions League.
Messi scored in Barcelona’s last-16 win over Napoli, taking his all-time tally to 115 goals in the competition.
Lewandowski, who turns 32 later this month, is also in the form of his life as his double against Chelsea took him to 66 in the Champions League.
The Pole is the 13-goal top scorer in this season’s competition, has scored a staggering 47 in all competitions for Bayern this season and has already won the Double.
Messi is used to the plaudits, the debate over whether he or Cristiano Ronaldo is the best of all time and Barcelona know they can win any game with one piece of magic from the Argentina superstar.
Lewandowski is so often overlooked in England when Harry Kane is talked about as the best No9 in the world but his trophies and success in his six years at Bayern is unparalleled. Lewandowski has won six German titles, three German cups and has never even made the top three in the Ballon d’Or. After his goals and glory this season, surely this was his year and yet they postponed it because of the coronavirus.
That is typical for Lewandowski, whose sheer consistency makes us expect him to score dozens of goals each season and not appreciate him as much as we should.
His Bayern team-mate Thomas Muller believes the quarter-final shoot-out will help decide who is the best attacking player in the world right now.
Muller said: “We’ll see that on Friday and Lewy will have to answer this question.
“Messi also played very well but it’s up to Lewy and us to answer this question in Lewy’s favour on Friday.”
Former Italy defender Alessandro Costacurta, now a Sky Sports Italia pundit, played against Messi and Diego Maradona in his career and believes the two are inseparable.
Costacurta said: “I had the fortune to play against both Messi and Maradona and I have to say they have something special.
“It would be good to make a league table comparing the two. When you face them, you don’t know how to stop them. At Milan we said you feel like an idiot.”
Muller also believes that Bayern, who put seven past Chelsea over two legs and also smashed Tottenham 7-2 at White Hart Lane in this season’s competition, are in great shape to win their first European crown in seven years.
He said: “We have time until the next game on Friday, so there was no need to conserve energy. Now it’s full steam ahead!
“We’re marching from record to record just now. I don’t know how many games we’re unbeaten. We go into most games as favourites but you have to win the games. That’s about more than just talent.
“In one game at this level, anything can happen. Runs can go down the drain then if you don’t hit the level you need to.”