Ivan Rakitic joked he is running out of things to write on Lionel Messi's match balls following the Barcelona forward's latest hat-trick.
The Argentine hit another treble during La Blaugrana's 5-1 victory over Espanyol in the Catalan derby on Sunday, leading the midfielder to claim that his teammate was the best football player 'in history'.
"I know I'm being repetitive, but he's one of a kind," he asserted to reporters after the match.
"Tomorrow he'll bring us another ball to sign, and I don't know what I have left to write on them.
"What he does is amazing, and we must help him so we can do everything together. He's the best in both the world and history.
"We enjoy Messi's presence, so I think he'll win the Ballon d'Or."
Rakitic then praised Barca for refusing to shelve their renowned passing style against Los Periquitos and urged his side to continue in the same fashion.
"I think Espanyol complicated things with their goal," he added.
"Nonetheless, we maintained our general idea of the game and eventually put in a complete performance. We must go on like this."
