Many players try to play like Lionel Messi but few come anywhere close – That doesn't stop pundits from comparing their stars to the icon, though!
GettyBarcelona's new Messi: Bojan KrkicBest known to English football fans thanks to his goals for Stoke City, Bojan Krkic broke Lionel Messi's record for Barcelona's youngest debutant in 2007, earning him instant comparisons to the Argentine forward. He played over 100 La Liga games for Barca before moving on to Roma, AC Milan, Ajax and Stoke. In 2018, he revealed that the "new Messi" nickname held him back and that he rejected a chance to go to Euro 2008 with Spain because of anxiety issues.AdvertisementGettyCatalan Messi: Gerard DeulofeuAny player who comes up through the Barcelona academy is always going to be in the shadow of Messi. Gerard Deulofeu was given the nickname the "Catalan Messi" as he broke through during his teenage years. Now at Watford, the Spain international was sold by Barca to Everton in 2015 but actually returned to his hometown club in 2017 when they exercised a buy-back option in his contract. He teamed up with Messi, playing 23 times before being loaned out and then sold back to England.Getty ImagesCroatian Messi: Alen HalilovicNot all the new Messis get to follow in the original Messi's footsteps, but the 'Croatian Messi' arrived at Camp Nou in 2014 to sign for Barcelona from Dinamo Zagreb, where he had rose to fame. The youngest ever player to play for Zagreb at 16 years and 101 days, he also became the youngest player to play for Croatia in 2013. Unfortunately, his only first team involvement at Barcelona was less than half an hour in a cup game and he was sold to Hamburg in 2016. Now on the books at AC Milan, the 22-year-old joined Standard Liege on loan in January with the Belgian club having an option to buy him this summer.Getty ImagesEgyptian Messi: Mohamed SalahMohamed Salah was named the 'Egyptian Messi' due to his amazing left foot, but by now he has moved on from the nickname to be regarded as one of the best players in the world. He finished sixth in the 2018 Ballon d'Or voting, just one place below Messi, having helped Liverpool reach the Champions League final and bringing Egypt to the World Cup. Still just 26, he followed up an exellent 2017-18 season with Liverpool by scoring over 20 league goals again in 2018-19 with the Reds again reaching the last four in Europe.