Lionel Messi: “This Argentina team is awesome but Barcelona is the best team of all time”

Lionel Messi scored a first-half brace as Argentina maintained their unbeaten record in their CONMEBOL World Cup 2026 qualifying group with a 2-0 victory over Peru on Tuesday.

The Inter Miami forward spoke in glowing terms post-match in Lima about just how strong the World Cup-winning side is. The first question for the Argentina captain, still on the pitch, was whether this Albiceleste team is as good as Pep Guardiola’s Barcelona team, where Messi was the main man with other stars including creators Xavi Hernández and Andrés Iniesta.

Argentina vs Barcelona

“This team is awesome and continues to grow, game after game,” said Messi. “They are getting better and better. Comparing it to that Barcelona... that Barcelona team is the best team of all time but I think this team is very close because of what they’ve shown and because they’ve been champions of America, of the world. We have great players, and it doesn’t matter who plays, you can’t tell because we have a very strong style of play, which identifies us a lot and we just hope to continue on this path.”

Full screen

Argentina’s mentality

“The team is very confident. Wherever we go, we have the ball, and we feel good. We enjoy playing this way, and hopefully we will continue to grow and dominate games.”

Strong dressing room

“The human aspect plays a huge role. I’ve said it many times... if there’s a good group and a good atmosphere in the dressing room, it’s much easier. We’ve shown for a long time that this is a great group, no matter what happens, it continues in the same way. It’s a very young group, with a lot of hunger. There are young players who have won everything and want to achieve big things individually and as a group.”

Scaloni’s message

“The message from the coach is that the Copa America and the World Cup are over, that a new cycle has begun. We have the same idea, but it’s starting from scratch again.”

Inter Miami

“We were close [to playoffs], I missed a lot of games and we had several injuries. July was tough because we played every three days, with travel in between. And we won a Cup for the club. I’ll play the games we have left now and be as ready as possible for November if I can play again. After that, I will enjoy the holidays. I will have more days off in December and holidays with my people. I’ll be back again in January, I’ll start pre-season from scratch and I’ll prepare as best as possible, like always.”