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Snooker champion Ronnie O’Sullivan has opened up about his admiration for Lionel Messi, claiming he wasn't too bothered about the Argentine lifting trophies.
The Inter Miami superstar will go down as one of the best to play the sport. Seven-time World Snooker champion O’Sullivan says he loves watching Messi in action and isn't too bothered about the former Barcelona man's stats or trophies.
"I think you're always going to have two camps. Those who are obsessed with the numbers and figures and then you're going to have the other camp that just love to watch someone play a sport brilliantly and love watching them," he told Eurosport.
"People like Federer and Messi. If you can please both camps, you've just shut them up and you've kept them happy. If you haven't got the titles, but you play great," O’Sullivan continued.
"I think it's about the legacy you leave. The way you play. Watching Messi play football. I'm not bothered about seeing him lift trophies, I just want to watch what he does and how he goes about it. For me that's entertainment. It makes me happy watching him play football," he added.
Although the snooker star loves watching Messi and is content with his performances on the pitch, the left-footed player's numbers are staggering. He has scored an incredible 722 senior club career goals and bagged 347 assists across competitions.
Messi won the World Cup with Argentina in 2022 and is a three-time UEFA Champions League winner with Barcelona.
Breaking down Lionel Messi's career trophies and stats
Lionel Messi's career took off after he decided to join Barcelona's youth setup from Newell's in the summer of 2000. After that, he remained with the Blaugrana for 21 years, bagging 672 goals and 303 assists while winning 10 La Liga titles and four Champions League trophies among other honors.
He then put an end to his illustrious Barcelona career in 2021 and joined French outfit Paris Siant-Germain. At the Parc des Princes, Messi scored 32 goals and assisted 35 from 75 appearances across competitions. During his two-year stay in France, he won two Ligue 1 titles but did not lift the Champions League.
In 2023, Messi decided to leave Europe and ply his trade for MLS side Inter Miami. So far, the 36-year-old has appeared 22 times for the Herons, bagging 18 goals and nine assists.
