‘United, City…’ – Messi snubs Liverpool as he names CL contenders
Lionel Messi has named his seven favourites to win the Champions League – and Liverpool aren’t one of them.
The Barcelona great moved to PSG on a free transfer this summer and will be looking to scratch their long-standing European itch.
He recognises, however, that several formidable opponents stand in his way, ranking Manchester United, City and Chelsea as the top English contenders. Real Madrid, Inter Milan and Bayern Munich could also make it far, he told L’Equipe.
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“It is true that the centre of attention is on PSG, but there are other very strong teams, such as Chelsea, the Manchester teams [United and City], Real Madrid, who always responds, Inter Milan, Bayern,” he said.
The comments are bound to rile fans of Liverpool, who have made a blistering start to their Premier League campaign and retain a perfect record in the Champions League.
The core of the squad that lifted the trophy in 2019 remains intact, while the manager, Jurgen Klopp, is as hungry as ever. Currently, there is no obvious reason why they can’t go on and win it again.
It is likely, however, that they will have to overcome PSG if they are to go all the way, and the French giants have never looked better. A blockbuster summer of recruitment saw Gianluigi Donnarumma, Sergio Ramos, Achraf Hakimi and Gini Wijnaldum all arrive at the Parc des Princes, before Messi made his sensational switch in early August.
The Argentine is eager to add to his tally of four Champions League trophies, having expressed regret following his Barcelona departure that he was not able to win a fifth title with the Blaugrana.
“I would have liked to have tried to win another Champions League,” he said at his farewell press conference.
“We got knocked out in the semi-final against Liverpool, which stopped us getting to another final. We got to the semi-final against Chelsea with Pep [Guardiola] and they prevented us from getting to a final.
“There could have been a time where we won another Champions League, but that’s football.”
