Former Liverpool goalkeeper Jerzy Dudek has described Lionel Messi as “deceptive” and “provocative” in his book, according to a report in the Mirror.
Dudek who is most famous for helping Liverpool beat AC Milan in the Champions League final in Istanbul in 2005 by making a number of saves including saving two penalties, has hit out at Lionel Messi and Barcelona in his book.
After leaving Liverpool, the goalkeeper spent four seasons at Real Madrid as back up to Iker Casillas and has recently released an autobiography.
In his book, Dudek described Lionel Messi, Barcelona and Pep Guardiola saying:
“He was deceptive and provocative, the same as Barcelona and Pep Guardiola,”
“They were so ready to provoke you and they were able to do it to perfection. That hurt Jose Mourinho and the whole team a lot.”
“I saw Messi say such rude things to Pepe and [Sergio] Ramos that you would not imagine from such a quiet and seemingly good person.”
Dudek also shed some light on his teammates Cristiano Ronaldo and Raul, saying:
“Cristiano Ronaldo is arrogant, but he’s a normal guy behind the scenes.”
“It’s about how people perceive him, more or less. Like Raul, he’s egocentric, incredibly competitive and a winner.”
“Both would prefer their team to win 2-1 with their goals than 5-0 with other players scoring.”
The fierce rivalry between Real Madrid and Barcelona is well documented with a number of enthralling encounters between both clubs over the years.
However, Dudek’s book sheds light on his first-hand account of the lesser talked about parts of the game and the intense rivalry between the players of both clubs.
Dudek’s claims regarding the two best players of the generation in Messi and Ronaldo may come as a surprise to some football fans.