Lionel Messi lauded as ‘best footballer I have ever seen’ by Mats Hummels after Barcelona star breaks another Champions League record
There is no footballer better than Lionel Messi, according to Mats Hummels.
The Barcelona captain scored once and assisted two goals in Wednesday's 3-1 defeat of Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League to cap his 700th appearance for the Catalans.
He also set a Champions League record on his landmark appearance, as his goal against Dortmund meant the Germans became the 34th different club to concede to Messi in Europe’s elite competition.
It means the Argentine has now scored against more different clubs in the Champions League than anyone else, even surpassing Cristiano Ronaldo (33).
And Dortmund defender Hummels had a torrid time against the Argentina forward at the Nou Camp.
He said: "In top form, Messi is the best footballer I have ever seen – period.
"We were not good enough to beat Barcelona today. We only created three or four real chances."
Messi played in Luis Suarez, who opened the scoring for Barcelona in the 29th minute, before the former doubled his team’s advantage four minutes later.
The 32-year-old then played a defence-splitting pass to Antoine Griezmann, who put the game beyond doubt in the second-half.
England star Jadon Sancho was brought on at half-time and netted a consolation goal for BVB with 13 minutes remaining.
Hummels added: "It was not a bad game, but not a very good one. Barcelona were excellent, though. Messi is always dangerous, of course.
"We had a really bad spell after that first goal, with my bad pass that led to their second goal."