LIONEL MESSI has an “unbearably competitive” training plan that once included him doing naked pull-ups in front of his team-mates.
The superstar is still going strong at 37-years-old and was named the MLS MVP in 2024.
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He helped Inter Miami win the Eastern Conference before they were knocked out in the play-offs by Atlanta United.
Former team-mate Oscar Ustari has revealed some of the secrets behind Messi’s longevity and praised the Argentine’s character.
He told DSports Radio: “Messi is unbearably competitive, he is incredible at everything. There are team-mates who had never seen him and are surprised.
“Nothing is a coincidence at that level. You see that his passion is football, training, being well and showing every day who he is.
“He has fun doing what he does. The first day I arrived at the club he was doing pull-ups buck naked, and all the guys were around him.
“He treats everyone equally, he’s very family-oriented. He’s a person who generates a lot for everyone.
“He is very involved in the academy, he is aware of everything. That is how I see it.”
Another of Messi’s former team-mates spoke about the presence the legend has, admitting he was too nervous to speak to him when they first met.
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Como star Nico Paz met Messi when playing for Argentina Under-23s.
He said of their encounter: “I had met him once before, when I was 17 years old, with the U20s, in a training session with the senior national team.
“This was the second time I saw him, but the first time I was in the locker room with him.
“I didn’t talk to him, I was too ashamed. I get nervous when I see him.”
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