"Maradona did not win 1% of what Lionel Messi won" - South American legend weighs in on Argentine debate

In an explosive interview with Chilean radio station Radio Cooperativa, former La Liga forward and Paraguayan legend Jose Luis Chilavert lavished praise on Lionel Messi and slammed Diego Maradona for being involved in the FIFA administration.

Lionel Messi has been compared to Diego Maradona on several occasions in the past and South American goalkeeping great Chilavert claimed that the Barcelona captain is far better than the Argentine World Cup winner.

#Argentina || "Maradona no ganó ni el 1% de lo que ganó Messi, por eso Leo es mejor": dice José Luis Chilavert https://t.co/v4AjtX2P9U

— FUTBOLCLUB.COM (@futbolclub) July 10, 2020

Lionel Messi is one of the best players in the world at the moment and is arguably the best in the history of the beautiful game. There has been plenty of debate in the past few years regarding the topic and Lionel Messi continues to sway most of the popular opinion in his favour.

Several South American football greats have weighed in on the debate in the past and while many tend to prefer Diego Maradona, Chilavert is strongly in favour of Lionel Messi and has claimed that the Barcelona forward is the best player in history.

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Lionel Messi is the best player in history, according to Jose Luis Chilavert

Lionel Messi has been praised by several football legends

According to the Paraguayan legend, Lionel Messi is in a different league when compared to Diego Maradona and should be considered the best player in football history.

Chilavert said that the Argentine captain has won an incredible number of trophies in career and that his achievements consign Diego Maradona's career to the shadows.

"Maradona did not win even one percent of what Lionel Messi won and for that reason, Lionel Messi is better. He is the best in history."

🗣️Newell's Old Boys hope Messi comes home to finish his career, says vice-president D'Amico:"I don't know if it is impossible. It is all up to him & his family."When Maradona came to Newell's nobody thought he could come."I hope that something similar can happen with Leo." pic.twitter.com/jRY98svc5f

— Goal India (@Goal_India) July 2, 2020

Diego Maradona was given an ambassadorial and administrative role by controversial FIFA president Gianni Infantino in 2017. Chilavert slammed the Argentine legend for accepting the position and called Maradona a puppet of the FIFA executive.

"Maradona is still Infantino's doormat."

Lionel Messi is widely believed to have surpassed Diego Maradona' achievements as a footballer. However, the modern-day legend is yet to win a trophy with his country and there are many in Argentine who believe that Lionel Messi needs to win the World Cup to be considered the greatest player in history.

Lionel Messi has not won the World Cup

Jose Luis Chilavert also claimed that Brazilian legends Ronaldo and Romario should also be involved in the debate and said that the two prolific goalscorers came close to Diego Maradona in terms of talent and skill.

"The other two that I liked were Ronaldo and Romario."

Lionel Messi has had yet another La Liga season and has scored 22 goals and 19 assists for Barcelona. The Argentine genius is evolving into a creative midfielder and often drops deep and uses his impeccable vision to pick out stunning passes and through-balls.

The Barcelona captain's efforts may well go in vain this season, however, with Real Madrid currently ruling the roost in La Liga. Barcelona faces Valladolid in a crucial fixture this weekend and will hope that Lionel Messi is at his inspirational best.

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