Pep Guardiola has spoken honestly about the impact Lionel Messi has had on his coaching career and believes "I owe him a bottle of wine."
Guardiola was in the Barcelona hotseat when Messi began to establish himself as a truly world class player, with the two winning three La Liga titles and two Champions League crowns together. The pair remain hugely complimentary of each other, with Messi hailing Guardiola as "having something special" while the Manchester City boss has claimed the Argentine is the world’s best ever footballer.
Prior to Guardiola’s appointment at the Catalan giants, a young Messi’s season best goal tally stood at just 17 but his rate exploded after the appointment of the former midfield maestro. The Argentine netted 38 goals in Guardiola’s first season at the helm, then 47 times in the 2009/10 campaign, then 60 goals the following year and in Guardiola’s final season, an astonishing 73 times.
