German football legend Lothar Matthäus said he is pleased with the level Lionel Messi is showing at the World Cup, but does not consider him a candidate to win the world's best player award this year.
Matthews explained that Messi (39 years old) plays in the American Football League with Inter Miami and not in one of the major European clubs, and therefore he should not be voted for to win "The Best" award presented by the International Federation of Football Associations (FIFA) or the Ballon d'Or, even if he leads Argentina to win the World Cup again.
The 1990 World Cup winner told the German newspaper Bild on Saturday: "The league in which Messi plays is nowhere near the level of the leagues in which Harry Kane, Kylian Mbappe, Ousmane Dembele and Erling Haaland play. These players are active in the strongest European leagues."
Matthews added: "The best player in the world should have performed convincingly throughout the entire year. Messi performed well with Miami, but the MLS, let's say, is not among the top 10 or 15 leagues in the world."
He continued, "Haaland and Kane have shown different levels of performance in the Champions League compared to Lionel Messi."
Messi has previously won the Ballon d'Or award for the best player in the world eight times during his illustrious career (a record), including winning the award after winning the 2022 World Cup with Argentina.
It is noted that the Argentine national team will face their Swiss counterparts in the quarter-finals of the 2026 World Cup in Kansas City tomorrow, Sunday.
