Andre Villas-Boas’ scout report on an 18-year-old Lionel Messi from 2005 surfaces

There is absolutely no arguing that Lionel Messi is one of the greatest ever players to grace the game of football.

Having made his debut back in 2004 under then-Barcelona manager Frank Rijkaard, as a 17-year-old, the Argentine went on to become a global icon, shattering all sorts of records, leading the Catalan giants to gloried heights of success.

Messi’s talents were quite evident well before he became a household name across the globe. Rated very highly at Barcelona as he came through the ranks, oppositions, too, had become aware of the danger he possessed when they faced the Catalans just after he had broken into the senior team.

Indeed, an opposition scout report from 2005, when Messi was just 18, has been doing rounds on the internet, indicating how big of a threat the Argentine superstar was deemed to be even at such a young age.

The scout report comes from Portuguese manager Andre Villas-Boas, who at the time was the assistant to Jose Mourinho at Chelsea. And, Villas-Boas, who would later go on to manage Chelsea and Tottenham, after watching Messi closely, had this to say about the then 18-year-old (h/t Football Talent Scout):

“Quality + speed but very left footed. Exactly the same behaviours as Ronaldinho. Inside between lines or diagonals. Encourages team forward by ball driving. Amazing 1 vs 1. If option is to foul him it’s important to do it outside the box and as early as possible. [Has] recovered from an injury recently.”

It is certainly interesting to see that Villas-Boas urges the Chelsea players to foul him often while also indicating that Messi would be a huge danger in one-on-one situations. Doubling up and fouling the six-time Ballon d’Or winner is something that teams have been doing all throughout his career.

The 34-year-old brought an end to his illustrious career at Barcelona this year, making a shock switch to Ligue 1 giants Paris Saint-Germain on a free transfer.