Former England captain David Beckham has lauded Lionel Messi as the greatest player to have ever played the game. Beckham said the talisman Argentine is a perfect player in his opinion. 

Messi recently lifted the Copa America title after La Albiceleste defeated Colombia by 1-0 in the summit clash. However, Argentina no.10 suffered an ankle injury, which is expected to keep him out of action.

“It’s just that effect that Leo has on the game and the world. One of the reasons we wanted to bring him to America was to inspire the next generation. That was my plan,” said David Beckham (via Daily Mail).

Beckham, co-owner at Inter Miami, revealed why he decided to bring Messi on board after he became a free agent following his deal with PSG.

“I obviously wanted to bring him for the player he is and the person he is,” Beckham added. “I played against him numerous times, actually twice thankfully, but I’ve been a fan of him and watched him for many years. And I always had the plan to bring the greatest player to ever play the game in my opinion to our team. Luckily, it happened.”

Former Manchester United captain added Messi is a perfect player when asked about the greatest player ever.

“I think everyone’s got their own opinions, there’s a lot of great players to have played the game over the years. But in my opinion, he’s the perfect player.”

“I could actually come at at him with my experience of moving to America and coming to a league that wasn’t as established like it is now. There was only 13 teams in the league, now there’s almost 30. It’s in a different position than what it is when I first came,” explained Beckham.

“He’s always loved Miami,’ Inter Miami’s co-owner continued. “He always loved the idea of the project of bringing the game even bigger in this country and when you bring someone like that to America, people notice. It’s been very special.”

Messi joined Inter Miami in July 2023 and has performed consistently for the club since his arrival.