Thiago Alcantara on Lionel Messi: 'If he played in goal he'd score 25'

Thiago Alcantara and Lionel Messi are no longer teammates, but there's no love lost between between the South American pair.

Barcelona's Champions League tie versus Bayern Munich will see Thiago return to the Camp Nou for the first time since he joined Bayern in the summer of 2013. And having spent a considerable amount of time playing alongside Messi, Thiago now faces the unenviable task of attempting to shut down the Argentine phenom.

In an exclusive with the Guardian, Thiago addressed the scenario but admitted that there's very little that hasn't already been said about Messi.

"There's nothing new I can say," said Thiago after laughing. "He's spectacular, incredible. He's playing further from goal and he's still scored 40 in the league. If he played in goal he'd score 25. 

"There's no comparison; he's the best, a competitive animal. But just because you recognise that, just because you watch him and think 'wow,' doesn't meant that when he's there in front of you, you won't try to get the ball off him and play yourself."

The full exclusive, which can be viewed here and is worth a read, sees Thiago talk about having a World Cup winner as a father, why he didn't join Manchester United in 2013, and his younger brother and Barcelona right-back Rafinha.