Josko Gvardiol reveals how he felt playing against 'the best player in history'

The Croatia and RB Leipzig defender relished his experience of going up against Messi twice.

Josko Gvardiol is proud to face Lionel Messi twice in his career, revealing ‘the best player in history’ plays differently for club and country.

The 20-year-old became the latest defender to suffer against Messi in Croatia’s 3-0 defeat to Argentina in a World Cup semi-final match on Tuesday.

The Argentina captain beat Gvardiol twice on the ball before setting up Julian Alvarez for Argentina’s third goal of the game. He also put away a penalty to improve his World Cup goal tally to five goals.

by far the best video i’ve ever taken #messi pic.twitter.com/vJglh088Dr

— Connor Kalopsis (@ConnorKalopsis) December 13, 2022

“I have already played against him, but he plays differently [with Argentina] than with his club,” Gvardiol said at a press conference on Friday about facing Messi.

“It’s a great experience, and one day I’ll tell my kids that I played against the best player in history.”

Tuesday’s World Cup clash marked the second time that Gvardiol crossed paths with Messi. They previously played against each other in a Champions League match between RB Leipzig and Paris Saint-Germain last season. PSG won the game 3-2, with Messi scoring twice in France.

Gvardiol may play one last World Cup game for Croatia on Saturday when Zlatko Dalic’s side take on Morocco in the third-place playoff. For betting tips and stats, visit this Ace Football link here.