Revealed: How to be the GOAT! Lionel Messi still practises ‘on his own after training’ at Inter Miami despite being eight-time Ballon d’Or winner & most decorated player in history

The Argentine icon is an eight-time Ballon d’Or winner and the most decorated player in history – with 44 major honours sitting alongside the remarkable haul of individual prizes that he has collected down the years. That record is considered to make him the best player to have ever graced a football field.

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Azcona is fortunate enough to have worked alongside Messi in Florida, with the 20-year-old midfielder – who made history when becoming the first academy graduate to represent the Herons in a MLS fixture – telling FIFA’s website: “Seeing him up close, he is even better than I thought he was. What I really admired about him was how he still practised on his own after training. And he is very competitive. He does not like to lose, even in training. If we were playing a small-sided game, he's on it every time. People might think it's all about his talent, but there's no way you can be the best in the world without working and he showed that to me. It’s very inspirational.”

Azcona, who is currently taking in a loan spell at USL Championship side Las Vegas Lights, added on what Messi is like as a person and professional: "I remember when I was around six or seven, I was watching Messi highlights on YouTube and I told my mum and dad: 'One day I'm going to play with him'. That dream came true, and it was amazing. He's an awesome guy, honestly. He's very humble. He doesn't act like what he is [raises both hands up high above his ahead]. He's very cool to all his team-mates. He’s great with the younger guys, he says ‘hi’ to everybody and he'll have a joke with us."

Messi has spent his entire career locked in a battle for global supremacy with Portuguese rival Cristiano Ronaldo, with both men still going strong well into their 30s as they raise the bar of individual brilliance to a height that future generations will struggle to reach.