And ahead of Barcelona’s trip to face Manchester United in the Champions League quarter-finals on Wednesday evening, the claim Lionel Messi made in 2017 about the goal he scored against United in the Rome final of 2009 is one of his favourites, has been re-visited.
Barca had dominated much of the match, but were still only 1-0 up through Samuel Eto’o early strike as the game headed towards the final 20 minutes.
It was then that Xavi hung a cross into the United box, and an unmarked Messi rose to brilliantly head the ball over a panicked Edwin van der Sar and loop it into the net.
Messi spoke about the goal to FourFourTwo for their July 2017 edition.
“It was hard to imagine that I was going to score with my head with [Rio] Ferdinand standing near me, but I didn’t really have a marker – the ball came into the centre and I was there to meet it,” he says.
“In the moments that the ball was in the air from Xavi’s cross, I pictured scoring this goal and I thank God it happened. “It was such an important goal in every sense: for the team, for the way the final was turning in our favour and for me, too. It’s still one of my favourite goals.
“After missing the 2006 final through injury, it was very special for me just to play in this game, let alone score in it. It completed a great season when we won everything.”