Ronaldinho wishes Messi returns to play for Barcelona

Ronaldinho calls himself a “friend” of Messi, though he was a mentor in the early days. He even introduced Messi to the Basketball legend Kobe Bryant – this when Messi was still an young upcoming talent.

When Ronaldinho introduced Kobe Bryant to 17 year old Lionel Messi

“He’s going to be the GOAT” 🐐pic.twitter.com/nJc3Sthww3

— Radman (@Radmanx23) March 21, 2023

“It was normal,” Ronaldinho said. “I told him[Kobe Bryant] about Messi’s quality. I didn’t just talk about Messi. I spoke of all my teammates. I just said he had a great future ahead of him.”

Messi made his debut at the young age of 16 alongside Ronaldinho, replacing Deco in the 82nd minute of a 1-0 win against local rivals Espanyol. At that time, Dinho was at the height of his abilities while playing for the Spanish powerhouses, winning the Ballon d’Or for the first time in 2005. The pair won two Spanish La Liga titles and the 2006 Champions League together.

Recently, Messi had spoken about Ronaldinho and his relationship at the Barcelona team. In particular, Ronaldinho’s exit from the club. “What happened was ugly. He didn’t deserve that after everything he did for the club? Changing Barcelona’s history. The way he left was very strange,” said Messi of Ronaldinho’s departure. “I wish I could have spent a couple more years with him,” Messi added.

Post his retirement from football in 2018, Ronaldinho collaborated with ‘The Player Tribune’ to create a beautiful piece which aptly starts with: “Dear eight-year-old Ronaldinho…”

‘At Barcelona, you’ll hear about this kid on the youth team. He wears number 10 like you. He’s small like you. He plays with the ball like you. You and your teammates will go watch him play for Barcelona’s youth squad, and at that moment you’ll know he’s going to be more than a great footballer. That kid is different. His name is Leo Messi.’

Ronaldinho adds that once he arrives with the senior squad ‘the Barcelona players will be talking about him like the Brazilian players were talking about you.’ He asks his younger self to deliver a single piece of advice to a youthful Lionel Messi, he writes: “Play with happiness. Play free. Just play with the ball.”