Lionel Messi has warned his Barcelona teammates not to write off Real Madrid, and also reflected that one day his record will be surpassed.
The Argentine has been speaking to the Press this week in reaction to having been awarded a historic fourth successive Ballon d’Or award.
Primary focus remains winning the League and, although the team are 16 points clear of Madrid, the 25-year-old has made clear that nothing is decided just yet.
“There is still nothing definite in the League. There was another year recently where we also had many points over Madrid and they cut that back,” he told ESPN this week.
“We know we can never write them off. We need to continue as we are doing and not make the mistake of relaxing.”
Messi then reflected on his achievement of winning the Ballon d’Or yet again, for a calendar year in which he also set a new world record for goals scored for club and country.
“The award is amazing, as special as all the rest. These are awards for the whole dressing room, they show how good the team is.
“I'm very happy. Right now I'm focused on getting better, winning more titles to cement my legacy.
“My record? I want it to last a long time, but of course someone at some time is going to beat it. I would have liked to have won more trophies last year.
“My aim is to get better, to never stay still. I always say I need to get better at everything.”
The year 2012 also saw Messi become a father to Thiago.
“Number one is Thiago, and everything comes after him. Of course I have to change nappies; I've no problems with that.”
One thing that the Argentine does not yet have in his trophy cabinet is a World Cup.
“Nothing could compare with winning the World Cup with Argentina. To see everyone lauding the national team would be the best thing.
“Criticism hurts individuals. Being together makes a difference and that is missing for Argentina.”
