Barcelona star and 5-time Ballon d’Or winner Lionel Messi hopeful of winning Champions League again

Lionel Messi backs Celtic

Barcelona star and 5-time Ballon d’Or winner Lionel Messi, has stated that he hopes Celtic’s friendly game with Barcelona, will prepare them for their Champions League qualification games coming up.

The Argentina international spoke exclusively to Daily Record (Record Sport) last night as his side prepare to go head-to-head with Celtic on Saturday. The Catalans meet Brendan Rodgers’ men at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin in the latest tie of the International Champions Cup, and while Messi wants to inflict as much damage as possible to the Scottish champions, he also wants to help Celtic prepare for the much tougher games they have coming up soon.

Celtic play their Champions League second leg qualifier against Astana in Glasgow next week and although the tie is still in the balance – with Brendan Rodgers leading his team to a 1-1 draw in Kazakhstan on Wednesday – Messi wants Celtic to finish off the job and progress in the competition.

“For Celtic they have much more important games than this coming up with the Champions League qualifiers, but this can help them prepare. We have had some games against Celtic that I will always remember, and they are a big club, with big fans, and I would like to see them qualify this year – it is where they belong.” Said Messi

“It is always a good atmosphere against Celtic. For the players at Barcelona who experienced the games in Europe against them, they will know what to expect from their fans. It is only a friendly, but I don’t think their fans know what a friendly is. There are a lot of Celtic fans in Ireland, and I expect them to make a lot of noise and create another special atmosphere.”

Lionel Messi hopeful of winning Champions League again

However, although Messi does want Celtic to do well, he still has his eyes set on the prize and wants to win the Champions League with Barcelona for a 5th time.

“My aims this season is the same as always, to try and win every competition that Barcelona are in. That is what is expected of us as a club, not to prioritise, but to aim and win every competition that we are in.” Messi said.

“The Champions League is always a big competition for Barcelona. It is a special trophy, and one that I would like to win many more times. It is never easier, and this year will be no different. The big teams in Europe have all improved, but we are confident in our squad and confident about the season ahead.”