There was a time when Lionel Messi could have played for Spain rather than Argentina, but the Barcelona forward was always clear that he wanted to play for the country of his birth. Former player turned analyst Gary Lineker has said that Messi would have won more had he chosen Spain over Argentina.
"I always thought that if Messi had been naturalised as a Spanish citizen before he played for Argentina, Spain would have won even more: three World Cups and three European Championships," Lineker said to 'Mundo Deportivo'.
The former England international, who also played for Barca in the eighties, has always admired Messi and frequently posts about him on social media.
Due to the amount of time he had lived in Barcelona, Messi could have accelerated the process to get a Spanish passport. However, he was never interested. He had always supported the 'Albiceleste'. When he did take Spanish citizenship it was only so he could play in the first team for Barcelona.
Lineker played against Diego Maradona but he has always preferred 'the flea' (one of Messi's nicknames) to 'the fluff' (Maradona).
"They say that Messi has never won a World Cup, but Maradona never won the European Cup and Messi has four Champions Leagues. Barcelona play with thirteen players because they have Messi," Lineker continued. "The numbers; Messi scores in almost every game and Diego didn't score that many."