Lionel Messi says he is impressed by Atletico Madrid’s Radamel Falcao and has labelled him a ‘great player’.

The Barcelona star is in Argentina to represent his country in the World Cup qualifiers with Uruguay and Chile and told Fox Sports Radio del Plata that Falcao has made an impression on him.

“Falcao is a great player and the quality he has with the ball and the way he shoots is impressive,” said Messi, who also took time out to analyse his two goals in El Clasico, particularly the first from a free-kick.

“It is a question of training, staying behind to practice them [free-kicks]”. You try it out and luckily I’ve scored goals from free-kicks, which I didn’t do previously.

“I got it into my head that I needed to improve and I trained to do that,” he explained.

Messi was also questioned about his personal life and the fact that he is about to become a father for the first time.

“I thank God for all he has given me in my sporting life and on a personal level. Now I can’t wait to hold my son in my arms and I’m a little more anxious as it could happen at any time.

“I’m anxious for my family and my girlfriend, but at the same time I’m relaxed and thankful that thanks to God everything is going well. It’s going to be a beautiful responsibility and I’m waiting for that moment.

“I’ve still not bought him a football, maybe when he’s older, but I’m sure he’s going to be a Barcelona fan.”

Tags Argentina Falcao Messi
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