Bayern Munich star Thiago Alcântara says that his former teammate, Lionel Messi, can play in goal and still score 25-a-season for FC Barcelona.
Read: Ronaldo Overtakes Messi In UCL Ranking
The Spanish midfielder said that although Messi is playing deeper, he is still finding the back of net regularly - and joked that the Argentine would still score plenty of goals even if he were to be played as goalkeeper.
"He's playing deeper and he's scored 38 La Liga goals – you could play him in goal, and he would still score 25 a season," he told The Independent.
"He's out of this world.
"But while it is fine to recognise that, and have respect for him, when you have him in front of you, you must try to get the ball off him and play yourself."
Thiago continued, saying that if Bayern coach Pep Guardiola was still in-charge at Barcelona, then he would probably still have been at the Catalan club.
"Pep has always had a lot of faith in me, and me in him, so if he was still the coach then yes, I would probably still have been at Barcelona," he added.
"But going over the past doesn't help you with the future and I'm just lucky enough to be here now with him at Bayern."
Thiago played 100 times for the Spanish giants, scoring 11 times, while he assisted a further 20 goals for his teammates.
Read: Keane Scholes Rip Into Real's Display vs Juve
At the Bavarians, the midfielder has played 34 games over his two seasons in Germany, scoring five goals, while assisting six times.
Do you believe that Bayern will be able to stop Lionel Messi co on Wednesday night? Let us know in the comments section below.
