Getty Dani Alves has sent a messsage to Lionel Messi.
Dani Alves has sent a message to Lionel Messi after the Barcelona legend helped secure the Ligue 1 title for Paris Saint-Germain with a 1-1 draw at Lens on Saturday, April 23.
The Brazilian, who is the most decorated player of all time, took to Instagram with a graphic that showed how Messi is catching up to his record of 43 titles. Alves also had some warm words for the Argentina international.
“Life always says: If you are to be overcome sometimes, let it be by someone better than you,” he wrote. “This post is not for ego, it’s just for you to also believe in yourself. Define your destiny and fight every day until you reach the goal!!”
Messi scored a superb goal in the draw against Lens to take his tally to four from 22 Ligue 1 appearances. The title is his first since he left Barcelona in summer 2021 and made the move to the French capital.
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Messi & Alves Talk Title Records
Messi had previously congratulated Alves on winning Olympic gold with Brazil at Tokyo 2020 and warned the full-back that he was hoping to win more titles than his former teammate before he hangs up his boots, as reported by Goal.
“I want to finish my last years competing for titles,” he said. “I congratulate Dani Alves, who won the Olympic [gold] medal and I warn him that I am going to fight to catch up with him and surpass him. That is my mentality.”
Alves responded in typically colorful style with a post on Instagram where he replied, “The greatest of all time, you can surpass me whenever you want, it will be one more assist for you.”
Xavi Talks Life Without Messi
Meanwhile, Barcelona boss Xavi opened up on life at Barcelona without Messi ahead of his team’s next La Liga fixture against Rayo Vallecano on Sunday, April 24. The Barcelona coach made it clear how difficult life is without the Argentine, as reported by Diario Sport.
“We are in the post-Messi era, we need to have a lot of patience. I was the first to aspire to winning all the trophies, but we have to reinforce for next season. We have to be realistic, have calm and patience. Without Messi it’s a lot more difficult. The attitude of the team has been laudable, that’s true,” he said. “There are all kinds of moments. There have been moments of sci-fi, like that 4-0 at the Bernabeu, but also moments of horror, like the Covid situation or when we were ninth in La Liga. That’s our reality and we have to face it.”
Barcelona will finish the season empty-handed but are aiming to secure second spot in La Liga and a place in next season’s Champions League. It’s been another chaotic season for the Catalans but the team looks to be heading in the right direction with Xavi installed as manager and a host of exciting young players in the team.
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