“He was a talented player” - Argentine talent Claudio Echeverri admits he is ‘nowhere near’ Lionel Messi, picks better comparison

Highly-rated Argentine youngster Claudio Echeverri has opened up on comparisons with Lionel Messi. The wonder kid admitted that he is nowhere near the level of arguably the greatest player of all time.

A host of young players have often been dubbed as 'Next Lionel Messi' or 'Next Cristiano Ronaldo' over the years. Echeverri also falls into that category and is widely regarded as Messi's successor in the Argentina side.

However, Echeverri has said that even though he looks up to Lionel Messi as his idol, he is nowhere near the Barcelona legend's level. The 17-year-old also hailed former player Pablo Aimar for his abilities, saying that his style was more similar to Messi. Echeverri told FIFA’s official website, as quoted by Goal:

“I always said that my idol was Messi, but I’m nowhere near Messi! I also really liked Pablo Aimar, who’s part of the national-team staff, and he’s spoken to me many times. He’s a great person, and he gives me useful pointers about what I need to correct in my game. I’d probably say ‘Pablito’, then – he was a talented player and loved to take on defenders like me.”

Echeverri also said that his next aim was to make it into the senior Argentine side after breaking into the senior River Plate team. He added:

“I always said that my dream was to make my debut for River’s first team, and I’ve done that now. Now, it’s probably playing for the senior national team. That’s my dream.”

Echeverri has so far made four appearances for River Plate, providing one assist in the process. He is capped 15 times for the Argentina Under-17 side and is currently leading his country in the 2023 Under-17 World Cup in Indonesia.

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Nicolas Tagliafico on Lionel Messi playing the 2026 World Cup

Argentina international Nicolas Tagliafico has said that winning the 2024 Copa America could see Lionel Messi decide whether to play in the 2026 World Cup or not. Messi had earlier said that he is unlikely to feature in the 2026 FIFA World Cup due to his age.

However, his compatriot and teammate Tagliafico recently said that the 2024 Copa America triumph could see Messi reconsider. The Lyon defender told Argentine newspaper La Nacion, as quoted by Telemundo:

"Do you know what the key is for Leo to continue? Win the Copa América next year. If we win it, I think he will be able to stretch things a little further. If we didn't win the World Cup in Qatar, he would leave the national team, but he achieved it and wants to enjoy it."

Messi is already 36 years of age and if he plays next World Cup, he will become the first player to feature in six World Cups.