Lionel Messi's former Barcelona teammate named most valuable player of MLS alongside Inter Miami star ahead of winter window: Reports

Lionel Messi's former Barcelona teammate Riqui Puig has been named the most valuable player in the MLS alongside the eight-time Ballon d'Or winner ahead of the winter transfer window by Transfermarkt. The duo are now valued at $20 million by the website.

The MLS Most Valuable Players ranking has experienced a major shake-up at the summit as Puig climbed up to join Lionel Messi at the top.

The Argentine superstar was sitting alone on the throne with a $25 million valuation before this update. However, in their most recent update, Transfermarkt valued the former Barcelona captain at $20 million - experiencing a $5 million fall.

On the other hand, Puig's value rose to $20 million, bringing him to par with his former Barcelona colleague. Elsewhere, Columbus Crew striker Cucho Hernandez came third with $18 million and Portland Timbers winger Evander came fourth with $14 million.

Orlando City's Facundo Torres, LA Galaxy's Gabriel Pec and Inter Miami's Diego Gomez were ranked fifth, sixth and seventh with $14m, $12 and $12 million respectively. LAFC's Daniel Bouanga and Mateusz Bogusz occupy the eighth and ninth positions respectively with $10 million each while LA Galaxy's Joseph Paintsil completes the top 10 with $10 million.

That said, it is worth noting that both Lionel Messi and Riqui Puig enjoyed exceptional outings in the MLS last season. The Argentine superstar bagged an impressive 20 goals and 10 assists in 19 outings to help Inter Miami finish at the top of the Eastern Conference. His Spanish counterpart contributed 13 goals and 10 assists in 29 games for LA Galaxy.

Contrasting Lionel Messi and Ruqui Puig's Barcelona careers

Lionel Messi and Riqui Puig share something spectacular in common: they both rose from Barcelona's famed academy La Masia and made their way into the first team. However, their paths in the senior team were parallel to each other.

In his time, the Argentine icon was an indisputable figure in the Catalan capital, leading the Blaugrana to their most successful era and establishing himself as not only the greatest player in the club's history, but also the finest player the sport has ever witnessed.

For Puig though, the spell went sideways. The midfielder couldn't establish himself in the team and was offloaded to the MLS as a result. He bagged just two goals and three assists for the team in 57 games, as opposed to Messi who recorded 672 goals and 303 assists to his name in 778 games.