During an appearance at a Euro 2016 event, Diego Maradona talked with Brazilian soccer legend Pelé who, together with Maradona and Messi, are soccer’s best three players in the history of the game. When Pelé asked Maradona if he knew Lionel Messi -widely considered the best soccer player in the world- Maradona’s response was nothing short of shocking, “He’s a really good person but he has no personality. He lacks the character to be a leader”.
Pelé then continued, “Ah, I get it, he’s not like we were back in the days. In the ‘70s, we [Brazil] had really good players like Rivellino, Gerson, Tostao.” Pelé was admitting that often when he played he also had other excellent players in his team. This wasn’t always been the case for both Maradona and Messi.
Lionel Messi of Argentina in action during the International Friendly match between Argentina and Portugal at Old Trafford on November 18, 2014 in Manchester, England. Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images
