Barcelona and Real Madrid face off in El Clasico tomorrow with the La Liga title hanging in the balance.
Messi has inspired Barcelona to the top of the table with Ernesto Valverde’s side yet to lose a league game so far.
However, Real will go into the game on a high after recently winning the Club World Cup, with talisman Cristiano Ronaldo also rediscovering his best form.
And, speaking ahead of tomorrow’s showdown at the Bernabeu, Barcelona legend Xavi praised Messi for putting Real to the sword over the years.
“Messi seems that every year and every game is better, each party does more things, surprises, is able to do anything in the field,” the 2010 World Cup winner told Mundo Deportivo.
“Messi is the cross of Madrid in the last ten to fifteen years, Madrid suffers a lot.
“Madrid and any team, but especially Madrid.
“And the Bernabéu has a lot of respect for Messi, because he has marked the differences in recent years, has always scored goals and is capable of doing what he wants.
“If Messi is inspired, Barça has many numbers to win the classic.”
Xavi also thinks Barcelona are better than their fierce rivals.
“I’m optimistic, I think Barça is better than Real Madrid, although they come from winning a title and that always gives confidence,” he said.
“I see Barça capable of making a good game and winning, capable of playing a leading role in the game, because Valverde has given the team a lot of balance.
“Barça is playing in the last matches with a midfielder more, that means he wants to have the ball and the domain of the game.
“The Madrid also, because it plays with Isco, but I think that the Barça by the profile of the soccer players can have more domain and that implies that he has more the ball in the classics has more numbers to win.”
