Issue 1
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MESSI VS MODRIC<br />
IN THE EYES OF<br />
PUYOL<br />
“Real Madrid’s Luka Modric may be<br />
“great” and the latest recipient of FIFA’s<br />
The Best Award, but Lionel Messi is by far<br />
the finest player on Planet Earth”<br />
according to Barcelona legend Carles<br />
Puyol.<br />
Puyol is the retired ex-Barcelona’s<br />
one-club man, served as the long-time<br />
team captain for his only club Barcelona<br />
and went on to appear in 593 official<br />
games for the club and win 20 major<br />
titles, notably six La Liga trophies and<br />
three Champions League titles. He was a<br />
Spain international on 100 occasions.<br />
Also, Puyol happens to be a full-fledged<br />
fan of Lionel Messi. The Argentine<br />
superstar has won the Ballon d’Or on five<br />
instances throughout his extraordinary<br />
career, was unexpectedly left off the<br />
latest pick out list for a significant<br />
international prize. He was disregarded in<br />
favor of Modric, the everlasting nemesis<br />
Cristiano Ronaldo and Liverpool forward<br />
Mohamed Salah.<br />
Modric, who had recently qualified to<br />
Champions League grandeur with Real<br />
last season before contributing to<br />
Croatia’s ascend to the World Cup final,<br />
eventually grabbed the topmost prize,<br />
but Puyol declared that he strictly<br />
disagrees.<br />
The former Spanish sensation recently<br />
declared: “Congratulations for Modric.<br />
Leo can’t always win. Otherwise, we<br />
should create an award for him and<br />
another for the rest. It's weird Leo is not<br />
on the list. I don’t have any doubt that Leo<br />
is the best in the world. You never know<br />
what they analyze for these individual<br />
awards. We must respect it, but football<br />
people know absolutely who is the best.<br />
He [Modric] is a great player who had a<br />
very good season but for me the best is<br />
Messi.”<br />
Messi continues to be one of Barca’s<br />
most powerful spells this season,<br />
reaching his 700th appearance for the<br />
club in midweek, but he has been<br />
powerless to prevent them dropping five<br />
points in their last two clashes, to which<br />
Puyol answered in defense: “Barcelona<br />
are expected to win every week and if<br />
they lose once then you get criticized<br />
.They have to fight for all titles, but if you<br />
have to choose between the Champions<br />
League and Copa del Rey then you<br />
choose the Champions League. Above all<br />
though is La Liga, which is very<br />
important”<br />
Barca held national supremacy again last<br />
season, with Puyol taking a nifty taunt at<br />
Clasico rivals Real and their choice to<br />
prioritize European glory: “Barcelona<br />
have always fought for everything while<br />
Real Madrid focused on the Champions<br />
League, they played heads or tails but at<br />
Barcelona you cannot do that, we have<br />
another mentality.”<br />
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