Barcelona Legend Predicts Lionel Messi Can Win 5th Champions League Title

Former Barcelona star Sylvinho is confident that his old teammate, Lionel Messi, has a great chance of winning another Champions League title this year.

As the UEFA Champions League approaches, some soccer legends are weighing in on Messi’s chances of copping the prestigious title for the fifth time in his career, and the latest one is former Barca star Sylvinho.

The Brazil legend is one of the Barcelona veterans who had witnessed Messi making his senior breakthrough at Camp Nou. Sylvinho has always been amazed by the Argentine’s impeccable skills, and in a recent exclusive interview with The Guardian, he lauded Messi once again.

For Sylvinho, nothing much has changed in Messi’s game. He also thinks that even to this day, Messi is still the best player in the world and could single-handedly change the outcome of the game. With the six-time Ballon d’Or winner inside the pitch, he believes Barcelona has a great chance of winning the Champions League once again.

“Messi has a bad season and scores 25. Barcelona have struggled but Messi is mucho Messi and they can still win the Champions League,” he said.

Throughout his glittering career, Messi has managed to exceed expectations multiple times. For this year’s Champions League, Sylvinho suggests that the Barcelona captain might do the same, pointing out that nobody was able to predict that Messi would win the Ballon d’Or six times.

“He didn’t speak much: come in, train, go home, a great family behind him. We could see there was something there, wow. He was different. But I’d be lying if I said we thought: ‘This kid will win six Ballon d’Ors.’ I’ve never seen a player like him. He gets the ball, bluh, bluh, bluh, bluh, goal. ‘Done, let’s go home,’” Sylvinho told The Guardian of Messi.

Messi already has four Champions League titles under his name.

After a dramatic 2019/20 La Liga season, the 33-year-old is keeping a positive mindset heading into this year’s UCL. But contrary to Sylvinho’s prediction that Messi alone can help Barcelona win, the Argentine icon believes it is necessary for Barcelona to work hard as a team.

Messi previously revealed that he and his team will use the long break to clear their heads and return “more keen than ever” in the Champions League.