The rivalry between Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo while both played in La Liga stole almost all headlines, and the Argentine ace shared a few thoughts on what it means to see his Portuguese rival leaving Los Blancos.
Speaking in a long interview with Catalunya Radio, "La Pulga" admitted that CR7's decision to leave Real Madrid was not something he expected, and with him out of the picture, Los Blancos will be forced to work harder if they want to beat Los Blaugranas to all titles in dispute.
"Yes, it was surprising. I didn't expect him to leave La Liga, and I was shocked to find out he was going to join Juventus, because it wasn't one of the teams that was mentioned the most. They are an even better team now," Messi said.
"Real Madrid is a very good team, but with Cristiano out of the picture, they are not as good as they were, and Juventus automatically has to be considered a title contender, now more than even because of the talent they had prior to his arrival," the player added.
The Argentine player kept on talking about the team's need to win one more UEFA Champions League title, naming the reasons behind this "obsession".
"It's time for us to win one more. We have been eliminated in the Quarter finals for the past three years, with the last one being the worst mainly because we lost a three-goal lead. That one should be our main goal, especially because we have a talented squad to search for that title," Messi stated.
Before the interview concluded, Messi "killed" all possibilities of seeing him play elsewhere in Europe, and named his kids as the main reason to refuse playing for another European - or American- side.
"Right now, i see myself living out the current extent of my contract. When the time comes, I'm sure I'll find something that challenges me. Right now, I don't see myself living in another city. My children have theitr friends and they love their schools, and they might suffer with such a massive change. Here (in Barcelona) we are having the time of our lives," Messi concluded.
