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What's the story?
Former Liverpool and Barcelona midfielder, Boudewijn Zenden, believes that the Reds might struggle to contain La Blaugrana talisman, Lionel Messi, during their much-awaited Champions League clash later tonight.
In case you didn't know
Barcelona is all set to host Liverpool in the highly-anticipated first leg of their Champions League semi-final fixture.
The LaLiga champions have a worthy competitor in Liverpool, who are in the midst of a tight Premier League battle with defending champions, Manchester City. Jurgen Klopp's men have had a standout campaign but will not take it easy, especially considering Messi's scintillating form this term.
The Argentine maestro has netted 46 goals in all competitions so far this season and is more determined than ever to add to his trophy collection, by winning a treble. Barcelona could pull off their first treble with Messi as captain if they win the Champions League and their Copa del Rey final against Valencia this month.
The heart of the matter
Speaking to Goal, Zenden acknowledged the difficulties Liverpool will encounter while trying to stop Messi. He said,
"It is impossible to stop him by using a single player. It makes no sense speaking about that, especially because he plays in a lot of different positions in every game."
"We saw it once more against Levante. It makes no sense speaking about how to stop him because you can't stop him."
When asked about Virgil van Dijk's role in stopping the Argentine, the former Reds midfielder replied,
"He already played versus Barcelona with Celtic. Playing against Messi needs teamwork but the main problem with that is Barcelona always have advanced passing lines and it makes the situation even harder to defend."
"That's why Barcelona always score, it is not only because they are so good, it is because their style is almost impossible to defend."
"But Liverpool is another offensive team with their own style. I think it is impossible there is a 0-0 [draw] in any game."
What's next?
You can catch the first leg of the Champions League semi-final between the two giants at 12.30 AM (IST).
