Out of favor Chelsea goalkeeper, Willy Caballero has revealed that he always suffers when he faces FC Barcelona talisman, Lionel Messi in a football game. He said the 33-year-old Argentine forward is out to kill goalkeepers by scoring goals whenever he is on the pitch.
Lionel Messi is regarded as one of the greatest footballers of all time. The Argentine footballer who has won a record 6 Ballon D’or is known for his excellent dribbling skills and his ability to score from any angle.
Since he broke into FC Barcelona senior team, he and the Spanish team have faced Chelsea about 12 times. In the 5 times, Messi met with Chelsea in the knock-out stage of the competition, the Premier League club succeeded in knocking out the Spanish club once (2011-2012 season) under Lionel Messi’s era.
Due to the football ability of Messi, no footballer has been able to catch up with him in terms of his goalscoring record in the competition. So far in his football career, the Argentina international has scored a record 120 UEFA Champions League goals.
However, he was not able to continue with the form he is known for so far this season as Barcelona were knocked out of this season’s UEFA Champions League campaign in the round of 16 stage by Paris Saint Germain.
Even though Messi managed to score two goals in PSG’s 5-2 aggregate win over FC Barcelona, Willy Caballero insisted that his countryman is always out to assassinate goalkeepers. The 39-year-old Argentine goalkeeper said Lionel Messi doesn’t consider whether a goalkeeper is from Argentina or not, his mission is always to score against any goalkeeper.
“Facing Messi, I had to suffer”, Willy Caballero told 90min recently. “He goes out to assassinate the goalkeepers. The goalkeepers, the defenders – he’s playing to kill. And killing means scoring as many goals as possible.
“He doesn’t care if you know him, if you’re Argentine or if you’re a friend. He’ll talk to you afterward, greet you and everything else, but in those 90 minutes he’s on a mission to hit you with goals,” said Caballero.
Unlike Lionel Messi who is still shining as a world-class footballer, Willy Caballero has lost his place at Chelsea. So far this season, the 39-year-old Argentine goalkeeper has managed to make just one Premier League appearance and one appearance in EFL Cup.
His contract with Chelsea will expire on June 30, 2021, and the London club might not extend the contract of the Argentine goalkeeper when it expires at the end of the season.
