Franco Mastantuono makes GOAT claim about Lionel Messi amid Real Madrid transfer rumors

Franco Mastantuono has hailed Lionel Messi as the greatest ever after earning his debut with Argentina on June 5 against Chile in the World Cup qualifiers. The River Plate youngster is one of the rising talents of world football and already has admirers in Europe.

Mastantuono rose through the ranks at the Estadio Monumental and has since established himself as a regular in the first team. The 17-year-old has already registered 61 appearances with the Argentine giants, scoring 10 goals.

A recent report from MARCA has stated that Real Madrid have already beaten Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) to the player's signature in a deal worth €45 million.

Meanwhile, Mastantuono came off the bench in the 84th minute against Chile earlier this week to make his international bow. In the process, he became the youngest ever debutant for Argentina at 17 years and 296 days old.

Interestingly, Lionel Messi was also on the pitch as La Albiceleste secured a narrow 1-0 win on the night. After the game, Mastantuono shared a picture of himself with La Pulga on social media, with the following caption:

"The greatest ever."

You can view the post below:

The eight-time Ballon d'Or winner started the game from the bench, with Lionel Scaloni bringing him on in the 57th minute as Nico Paz's replacement. With qualification for the 2026 FIFA World Cup already secure, Scaloni can afford to treat Lionel Messi with the utmost caution to preserve him for the main event.

How many goals has Lionel Messi scored for Argentina?

Lionel Messi has scored 112 goals from 192 games for Argentina to date. Only his bitter rival, Cristiano Ronaldo (132), has scored more goals in men's international football to date.

La Pulga has enjoyed tremendous success with La Albiceleste to date, winning every trophy on offer. The 37-year-old announced himself to the world by winning the Under-20 FIFA World Cup in 2005.

Messi followed that up by securing gold at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. After a barren run of over a decade, the diminutive magician finally found success on the international stage in 2021, when he lifted his first Copa America title.

The following year, La Pulga won the Finalissima by helping Argentina beat Euro 2020 champions Italy by a 3-0 scoreline. Later that year, Messi fulfilled his prophecy, powering La Albiceleste to the coveted 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar.

La Pulga has also won the 2024 Copa America with his nation and is now gearing up for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

About the author

Deepungsu is a veteran football journalist who has been covering daily transfer roundups and news for over six years at Sportskeeda. He has written over 9000 articles for the website, and has garnered close to 20 million reads.

Deepungsu holds a PG degree in Microbiology and an MBA degree in Total Quality Management. He has an extensive two-decade long writing experience, which includes a decade of sports blogging. His writing prowess has even led his work getting cited on the legendary Franz Beckenbauer's Wikipedia page.

Inspired by Diego Maradona, Deepungsu played as an attacking midfielder for his local club at subdivision level in his initial years and scored an important goal or two. However, his all-time favorite footballer is Lionel Messi, and evidently, he feels Argentina's glory in 2022 is his favorite FIFA World Cup moment for fulfilling his long-standing dream. He is also an ardent East Bengal fan.

Deepungsu has been a Manchester United supporter since the year 2000. Unsurprisingly, his favorite manager is Sir Alex Ferguson and the Scotsman helped him get through some of the toughest days of his life. Like the fiery Scot, Deepungsu also leaves no stone unturned when it comes to accuracy in articles and only relies on credible sources.

Despite believing in Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland to create an iconic rivalry, Deepungsu reckons no one can match the longevity of Messi and Ronaldo. He spends his leisure time writing about life on his blog, reading books, and playing the guitar.

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Edited by Ritwik Kumar