'Coutinho Can Be As Good As Messi'

Mauricio Pochettino believes Liverpool's Philippe Coutinho possesses qualities similar to Ronaldinho and Lionel Messi.

The Brazilian has enjoyed a promising start at Anfield since joining from Inter Milan in January, and also attracted interest from Southampton during the transfer window.

Pochettino knows the 20-year-old midfielder well after coaching him during a loan spell at Espanyol last season, and admits he could cause Southampton problems when Liverpool visit St Mary's on Saturday.

"Philippe is a Brazilian player and, as it happens with most Brazilians, he has a special magic in his feet," said the Saints boss.

"Aside from the magic that he has, he also has an amazing work-rate and that makes us doubt whether he fits the mould of a typical Brazilian player or a European one because his work ethic is outstanding.

"What is important about him is he is a good lad, a good kid - a great, humble person.

"I do think Coutinho has that same quality that Ronaldinho and Messi have, but he has much to prove yet.

"What is really clear to me is that Coutinho is a really responsible player - really dedicated and responsible to his own players."

Source http://www.skysports.com

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My Golden Left Foot

A Japanese jeweler by the name of Tanaka Kikinzoku has produced a pure gold model of Lionel Messi’s left foot, which was revealed to the public in Tokyo yesterday.

Tanaka took a casting of Messi’s foot at the tail end of 2012 and now, three months on down the line, the 25cm-tall, 25kg replica was unveiled by none other than Lionel Messi's brother, with the announcement that the sculpture is available for purchase and that it could be yours for the incredibly reasonable price of just $5.25million (around about £3.5million).

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Messi’s New Boots Designed By Himself

Not only is Lionel Messi the greatest player in the world right now, it seem he also has skills in graphic design, according to Adidas he was the brains behind his new AdiZero F50 boots. Over to the design team to explain how he dreamt them up.

The design is intended to reflect Messi’s footballing philosophy. The boot colour scheme is a mix of red and white – red being Messi’s favourite colour and picked to represent the danger he poses on the pitch as well as his burning desire for the game.

The clean white frame of the boot symbolises lightness, with speed-inspired graphics demonstrating his pace.

A single red stud on the sole plate in amongst 10 white studs represents Messi alongside his teammates and how he sees himself as being only as strong as the team around him.

And if that doesn’t clear things up here’s a long winded video…

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Muller Receives Messi’s Signed Shirt

Gerd Muller hailed Lionel Messi as 'an incredible player' after the Barcelona star broke his record for the most goals in a calendar year.

Muller grabbed 85 goals for Bayern Munich and West Germany in 1972 and the mark stood for 40 years until Messi netted his 85th and 86th goals in Barca’s 2-1 win at Real Betis in December to mark an amazing 2012 for the little Argentine.

Well Der Bomber has received a signed Barcelona shirt from the new record holder with a message of recognition which reads, Dear Gerd, “With my respect and admiration.”

Muller said, “I’m very pleased and proud to receive a jersey like this from the best player in the world.” Muller also said that he plans to loan the shirt to the Bayern Munich museum.

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Messi To Wear Special Ballon d’Or F50 Boots

Adidas have produced a special pair of F50 boots for Lionel Messi in order to commemorate the little Argentines four straight Ballon d’Or wins. Messi will wear the boots for Sunday’s La Liga match against Malaga, so keep a look out for them.

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