MESSI GREATER THAN MARADONA, SAYS ARGENTINA COACH SCALONI

Argentina’s World Cup-winning coach Lionel Scaloni has declared Lionel Messi the greatest player of all time, surpassing Diego Maradona.

“If I have to choose one I choose Leo, I have something special with him. “He is the greatest of all time, though Maradona was also fantastic,” Scaloni said on Tuesday to Spanish radio station Cope.

Argentina fans have long preferred Maradona to Messi, but attitudes appear to be changing after the PSG forward led the team to World Cup victory last month, the first time since Maradona inspired them to victory in 1986.

Scaloni also revealed that when he was named Argentina coach in 2018, he prioritized speaking with Messi, who was on leave from international duty following the disastrous World Cup in Russia.

“We started by having a video call with Messi. He expressed his gratitude, and the first thing we said to him was, ‘Come back. We’ll be waiting for you’. That’s exactly what we did, and eight months later he returned with an incredible group,” Scaloni added.

“It’s not difficult to coach Messi. You cannot correct him on a technical level, but you can sometimes instruct him to press or attack in a specific manner. He is number one when he smells blood.”

Scaloni also defended goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez, who was chastised after making an obscene gesture when accepting the Golden Glove award and carrying a toy baby with Kylian Mbappe’s face on it during the open-top bus parade following Argentina’s victory.

There is no better way to spend a Saturday than with your friends. He behaves like a child. He is an incredible guy, and his personality has contributed significantly to the group,” Scaloni added.