Barcelona are not the best team ever

The current Barcelona team is not the greatest ever.

They’re not even the best in my lifetime.

Much as there was to admire in Barcelona’s play on Saturday it would be wrong to describe them as the greatest team ever. I can’t speak for teams before the mid 60s but in my view they are not yet the greatest team in my lifetime.

Firstly the side they were playing may have been England’s best but this current Manchester United side is not a patch on the 1968 one that contained Best, Crerand, Charlton, Law, Stiles, Dunne, Brennan and Foulkes.

United also lack a manager who realises that at the highest level you need to have players who can keep the ball and his decision to keep Ferdinand and Vidic unoccupied at the back whilst Messi danced and dominated the game from just ten yards in front of them was the actions of a man who should be persuaded that his time is up.

Regards Barcelona - does anyone seriously suggest that the AC Milan side of the 80s with Ruud Gullit, Marco van Basten, Frank Rikkaard, Paolo Maldini and Franco Baresi wouldn’t beat them?

The 1970s Ajax with Krol, Haan, Cryuff and Neeskens would beat them.

And so would Pele, Gerson, Tostao, Jairzinho, Alberto, Rivelino, Clodoaldo - Brazil 1970.

I also suspect the Liverpool side of the early 80s would not give up as easily as Manchester United did, would close down Messi and make it as uncomfortable as possible for Barcelona and in Kenny Dalglish they had a player guaranteed to keep the ball when their defence needed a rest.

So I’d say Barcelona are either the 4^th or 5^th best team in my lifetime.

Regards Messi, it's laughable to suggest he’s anywhere near yet as good as Maradona.