Anzhi Makhachkala striker Samuel Eto'o has labelled Lionel Messi a "god" and praised his grounded personality.
The pair spent five years together at Camp Nou between 2004 and 2009, and having formed a firm friendship with the Argentine off the pitch, the Cameroon international is desperate to see him add international honors to his trophy cabinet.
"Messi is a god, as a person and even more as a player," he told RT. "I hope that he wins the World Cup with Argentina. To the gods of the world, all I ask is that you give him that chance, because I have seen him grow. I can only hope for the best, because I have seen and know what a good boy he is."
The 31-year-old also spoke about the effect former Blaugrana teammate Ronaldinho had on him during his time with the Catalan club.
The pair spent five years together at Camp Nou between 2004 and 2009, and having formed a firm friendship with the Argentine off the pitch, the Cameroon international is desperate to see him add international honors to his trophy cabinet.
"Messi is a god, as a person and even more as a player," he told RT. "I hope that he wins the World Cup with Argentina. To the gods of the world, all I ask is that you give him that chance, because I have seen him grow. I can only hope for the best, because I have seen and know what a good boy he is."
The 31-year-old also spoke about the effect former Blaugrana teammate Ronaldinho had on him during his time with the Catalan club.
"He is a genius, and not just in football. The day I was upset, I did not play well, but when you saw him arrive in the locker room with a smile on his face, you knew he was going to roll," said Eto'o, who moved to Russian club Anzhi in 2011 after a two-year spell with Inter Milan.
Follow GOAL.COM on Twitter