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Chelsea Women's striker Lauren James has explained why she prefers Blues legend Eden Hazard over Inter Miami superstar Lionel Messi.
Messi is widely regarded as one of the game's best-ever players. He has scored over 800 goals for club and country and won individual and team honours galore. He's still going strong at the age of 36, having played a key role in Argentina's FIFA World Cup 2022 triumph.
Meanwhile, Hazard may have damaged his pedigree with an injury-plagued four-season stint at Real Madrid, but his numbers at Chelsea were world-class. The Belgian bagged 110 goals in 352 appearances across competitions in seven seasons.
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He played a key role in the Blues' two Premier League, one Europa League, one FA Cup and one League Cup triumph. The diminutive Belgian was renowned for his dribbling ability, which James says is the reason she likes him more than Messi and not for being a Chelsea fan.
The 22-year-old told Sky Sports (as per talkSPORT) ahead of her team's league clash with Tottenham Women:
"No, I just like the way he plays, just the way he dribbles. I still have Messi, but Hazard will always be my favourite."
Hazard is currently a free agent after mutually terminating his deal with Madrid that would have expired in 2024.
How has Lionel Messi fared against Chelsea?
Lionel Messi has scored goals galore for club and country during his illustrious career. However, the seven-time Ballon d'Or winner doesn't have a particularly great record against Chelsea.
The 36-year-old has played the Blues 10 times across competitions - all in the UEFA Champions League for Barcelona - between the 2005-06 and 2017-18 seasons. He scored three goals and set up as many, with his Barca side winning two games, losing as many and drawing the remaining six.
After failing to score against the Premier League giants in his first eight meetings, Messi scored in both legs of Barcelona's 4-1 aggregate win in the 2017-18 Champions League Round of 16.
The diminutive Argentinian scored in the 1-1 first-leg draw at Stamford Bridge before netting a brace in the 3-0 win at the Camp Nou, where he also provided an assist.
