LIONEL MESSI has been slammed by former Liverpool player Jerzy Dudek as being “provocative.”
In his autobiography, Dudek is said to have opened up on some of his former rivals and team-mates.
And Dudek, who won the Champions League with Liverpool, has revealed his thoughts on the Argentinian superstar.
According to Italian outlet Il Posticipo, he said: “It was very provocative (things Messi said), as were Barcelona and their coach Pep Guardiola.
“They were always willing to bother you and many times they managed to do it perfectly.
“I’ve seen and heard Messi say such rude things to Pepe and Ramos that you can’t even imagine that they can come out of the mouth of a person who seems so calm and friendly.”
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Dudek joined Barcelona’s arch-rivals Real Madrid in 2007 from Liverpool, and stayed there until retiring in 2011.
Messi left Barcelona in 2021 after financial restrictions meant the club were unable to re-sign him.
Consequently, he ended up at current club Paris-Saint Germain, and after a relatively slow season last year, he has once again found his magic touch.
The 35-year-old has eight goals and eight assists in 13 appearances this season, which has helped PSG to claim top spot as they look to go back-to-back with Ligue 1 titles.
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But Messi’s future is currently shrouded in doubt, with reports linking with him with a return to Barcelona next summer.
He also confirmed Qatar would be his final World Cup appearance, but it is unknown whether that will also instigate a full international retirement.
However, Dudek didn’t just end his character assessments with Messi -extending it towards former Madrid team-mates Cristiano Ronaldo and Raul.
He said: “Raul was a very arrogant character, but overall he was a normal guy.
“Cristiano Ronaldo, on the other hand, is very self-centered but he really wants to win.
“Surely he would prefer a 1-0, with a goal of his than a 5-0 without scoring him.
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“Other than that, he’s an absolutely normal guy, but I understand he can be perceived differently from the outside.”
Ronaldo recently hit 700 club career goals after his match-winner against Everton.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
