Lionel Messi's El Clasico debut - Who were his team-mates and where are they now?

FC Barcelona won 3-0 on Lionel Messi's El Clasico debut in 2005...

After making his La Liga debut during the 2004-05 season, Lionel Messi appeared in an El Clasico tie for the first time in the next season.

On November 19, 2005, the Argentina star featured in the first-ever El Clasico of his career. The Catalan giants thrashed their rivals Real Madrid 3-0 at the Santiago Bernabéu, thanks to Ronaldinho's brace and a strike from Samuel Eto'o.

Since November 2005, Messi went on to play 45 El Clasicos in his career which is the joint most number of appearances along with former Real Madrid star Sergio Ramos. Incidentally, both Ramos and Messi have left their respective clubs this season.

Messi is also the highest goalscorer ever (26) in the history of the clash and has also provided the most number of assists.

Let us take a look at the players who played alongside Messi in his El Clasico debut and where are they now?

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1Andres Iniesta - Sub
A La Masia product, Iniesta made his Barcelona debut in 2002 and went on to play until 2018. He is the club's third-highest most-capped player after Lionel Messi and Xavi Hernandez. After leaving Barcelona, he moved to the J-League to join Vissel Kobe. In May 2021, the 37-year-old midfielder signed a fresh two-year contract with the club.

Jasper Juinen
2Samuel Eto'o - ST
The legendary Cameroon striker played for five seasons at Barcelona from 2004 to 2009. He later played for Inter Milan, Chelsea and Everton. He retired from professional football in 2019 after spending a season with Qatar SC. He is currently the Legacy Ambassador of Qatar World Cup 2022.
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3Lionel Messi - RW
Lionel Messi, who was a part of Barcelona for 21 years, parted ways with the club after his contract ran out in 2021. He recently guided Argentina to Copa America 2021 triumph. This was his first major international trophy with La Albiceleste.

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4Ronaldinho - LW
The Brazilian legend played at Barcelona from 2003-2008. During that period, he won six titles including two La Ligas and one Champions League. In January 2018, Ronaldinho announced his retirement from professional football.
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5Xavi Hernandez - CM
One of the greatest players to have have donned the Barcelona shirt, Xavi Hernandez was the most-capped Barcelona player with 767 appearances until February 2021 when his former teammate Lionel Messi broke the record.
After leaving Barcelona in 2015 where he has been playing since 1998, the Spaniard joined Qatari club Al Sadd where he spent the final four seasons of his professional career. Upon retirement in 2019, he took over as the head coach of Al Sadd.
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6Deco - CM
The legendary Portuguese midfielder joined Barcelona after winning the Champions League with Porto in 2004. He played at Barcelona for four seasons winning the La Liga twice and the Champions League once.
After his Barcelona stint, he joined Chelsea and then finally retired from professional football 2013 at Fluminense.
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7Edmilson - DM
The Brazilian, who could play in multiple positions like central defence and defensive midfield, joined Barcelona from Olympique Lyon in 2004 and played at the club for four seasons.
Thereafter, he went to Villarreal, Palmeiras, Real Zaragoza and finally featured for Brazilian club Ceara Sporting Club before retiring in 2011.
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8Giovanni van Bronckhorst - LB
The left-back played at Barcelona for four seasons from 2003 to 2007. Other than the Spanish giants, Giovanni van Bronckhorst has played for clubs like Arsenal and Feyenoord. He retired from professional football in 2010.
A year later in 2011, the Dutchman joined Feyenoord as an assistant coach where he worked for four seasons before taking over as the club's head coach in 2015. In four seasons as head coach, Van Bronckhorst won five titles including one league title. In 2020, he joined Guangzhou R&F but in December, he left the club citing personal reasons.
Recently, the former Barcelona has expressed his desire to manage the Dutch national.
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9Rafael Marquez - CB
The Mexican defender played at Barcelona for seven seasons from 2003 to 2010 after which he moved to MLS side New York Red Bulls. He retired from professional football in 2018 after spending two seasons at Mexican club Atlas FC.
Upon retirement, he was appointed as the sporting president of Atlas, a post he held until 2019. In 2021, he joined Spanish Tercera division club Alcala as a youth team coach.
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10Carles Puyol - CB
Club legend and former captain Carles Puyol played for Barcelona all through his career from 1999 to 2014. He won all major trophies with Spanish giants which include six La Liga titles and three Champions Leagues. Puyol is the club's fifth most-capped player of all time with 593 appearances under his belt.
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11Oleguer Presas - RB
The Spanish central defender played at Barcelona for six seasons (2003 to 2008) after which he moved to Ajax. He retired from professional football in 2011. Oleguer Presas currently works as a coach at a local football school in Catalunya.
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12Victor Valdes - GK
A Barcelona academy product, Victor Valdes played for the club for 12 years from 2002 to 2014 after which he joined Manchester United. During the 2015-16 season, Valdes was sent on loan to Belgian side Standard Liege. In 2017, Valdes retired from professional football after playing a year at Middlesbrough.
In 2018, Valdes completed his UEFA Pro Licence and joined a local Madrid club ED Moratalaz's youth team. In 2019, he returned to Barcelona and took charge of the club's Juvenil A side as their head coach. Since 2020, he is managing a local Barcelona club UA Horta.