Tebas: 'I want Messi, Mourinho, Guardiola, Klopp, & Cristiano in La Liga'

The president of the Spanish top division maintains some of the biggest names in football will help boost the league’s image.

While there had been no shortage of world-class talents in Europe’s other top leagues, La Liga had boasted two of the greatest players of the modern era for the better part of the last decade.

Cristiano Ronaldo took the footballing world by storm after his move to Real Madrid in 2009, cementing his status as arguably the best player in the club’s history by becoming their record scorer with 450 goals in 438 games and leading them to multiple Champions League and La Liga titles.

Ronaldo also formed an intense rivalry with FC Barcelona star Lionel Messi and the constant duel for supremacy between the two players had become an enticing feature of the league for football fans around the world, something which La Liga lost when the former moved to Juventus in 2018.

Another exciting rivalry that no longer exists in La Liga was between Jose Mourinho and Pep Guardiola.

Two managers were in charge of Spain’s biggest powerhouses and their bitter rivalry gave rise to tactical innovations, with the pair on opposing ends of the tactical spectrum.

Mourinho is currently enjoying a fine spell at Tottenham while Guardiola is in his fifth season at Manchester City.

But if Javier Tebas, the La Liga president, had control over things, the aforementioned players and coaches and Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp would be united.

“I want Messi in La Liga, just as I want Mourinho, Guardiola, Klopp, Cristiano,” Tebas said at the World Football Summit.

“They all help you grow. It’s not essential. They’re not as important as people say. Neymar left. It’s necessary to have a strategy, a player can help you, but it’s not essential.

“We’ve got the deals done for the next four seasons in nearly all territories. It can affect sponsorships somewhat, but we’ve really worked hard on the league’s brand and we wouldn’t notice it.

“I hope that Messi, who’s the best player ever, finishes his career here.”