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Argentina icon Lionel Messi has reportedly asked his compatriot Enzo Fernandez to reject Real Madrid in favor of a move to Liverpool.
Fernandez, 21, is heavily linked with Los Blancos and the Reds. Real Madrid view the Benfica midfielder as an alternative to their top transfer target Borussia Dortmund teenager Jude Bellingham.
However, Liverpool are seemingly obsessed with signing Fernandez, and Jurgen Klopp has been insisting that he will arrive in the winter transfer market to close the deal.
The Reds' pursuit of the former River Plate talent is boosted by a report from El Nacional, which claims that Lionel Messi is urging his compatriot to join Liverpool. The Paris Saint-Germain attacker supposedly doesn't want to see Fernandez head to Real Madrid, a team he has a long-running rivalry with due to his past at Barcelona.
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The Argentine midfielder seems to have heeded the advice of his captain. Fernandez is expected to be heading to Merseyside in January.
He has been in scintillating form for club and country lately, scoring three goals and providing five assists in 24 appearances across competitions for Benfica. Fernandez has helped Roger Schmidt's side keep 11 clean sheets in those 24 games.
He is also excelling at the 2022 FIFA World Cup with Argentina alongside Lionel Messi. The former River Plate youngster has made five appearances, scoring one goal and contributing an assist.
Fernandez has an €120 million release clause in his contract with Benfica.
La Albiceleste are in the competition's semi-finals and face Croatia on Tuesday, 13 December. Fernandez's focus will be on helping Argentina win their third FIFA World Cup.
Real Madrid's Luka Modric chooses Diego Maradona over Lionel Messi
Lionel Messi's name is always mentioned in debates surrounding who is the greatest player of all time. The iconic forward has made 853 appearances throughout his career, scoring 701 goals and contributing 333 assists.
Messi, 35, is lighting up the FIFA World Cup in Qatar with four goals and two assists in five appearances. However, when Luka Modric was asked who the greatest player was out of Messi and the irrepressible Maradona, he chose the latter.
Modric replied during the group stages of the 2022 FIFA World Cup:
“For me, Maradona is the greatest. With Messi , Maradona and Leo are the two greats, but Diego is Diego."
Messi has surpassed Maradona for FIFA World Cup goals, with 10 to the late Argentine's eight. However, he still hasn't won the trophy, something Maradona accomplished in 1986.
The Napoli legend scored 159 goals and provided 82 assists in 343 appearances throughout his career. He was one of the most entertaining footballers to ever grace a pitch, with a wide range of trickery up his sleeve and close ball control.
