Lionel Messi has announced his retirement from international football. Giggs and Ferdinand recently discussed their experiences facing Messi on a podcast.

For those who never got the chance to play against Lionel Messi, both of us have had that experience. We've both played against him, and now he's retired from international football, so it's time we tell everyone what it's like to play against Messi. Why don't you go first, since my experience wasn't particularly pleasant.

It wasn't pleasant at all, to be honest. The first few times I played against him, it was okay because he was playing on the right wing and I remember Evra dealt with him well. But then he was given more freedom to move around as he pleased. In the Champions League final at Wembley, I was playing in midfield, so he was close to me, operating in my area.

I thought that in those first few minutes I would get stuck in with him, but he just bounced off me. I tried to tackle him hard, but he didn't budge. He just dribbled past me.

People know about his level and Cristiano Ronaldo's level, their goal-scoring ability, and their consistency. But people often forget that these players rarely suffered from injuries and rarely missed matches. Athletes from two or three decades ago were different from now. Tackling was intense back then, but they still got up after being fouled. Missing no matches and avoiding injuries—we'll never see that level of durability again. You can't stop Messi with your arms because he's small and can slip through. He's just too quick.

He can change direction whenever he wants. His acceleration, especially over short distances, is the most extraordinary I've ever seen. You think you've forced him into a corner, but suddenly he bursts away. It's genuinely a nightmare, and it was clearly a huge challenge for me.

He knows exactly where to go, and others can't contain him. It's like in the World Cup game against England—he went into areas where everyone was around him. We should have been able to limit him, but for some reason, we couldn't during the match. I still don't understand why we didn't do that. That's football intelligence, pure game sense—knowing where to be. You mentioned his transition from the wing to the midfield area, and he did that brilliantly. It's an excellent template. I think a player like Yamal might fit into this category in the future as well. What's the challenge of moving from the wing to a central role?

Even though you have more players around you, you also have more directional options and everything is more open. However, when you play on the wing, the right-back gives you only one option.

I'd say Messi was exceptional as a winger, but when he played as a free player, his level of play went up another tier. He could come deep to receive the ball. Yes, he didn't run much—I've never seen anyone move like Messi does. He was just conserving energy, and the team's tactics were built around him. Because he brings so much to the team, he walks into space, receives the ball, and as I said, from a standstill, he accelerates to full speed instantly. I've never seen anything like it. His center of gravity is so low. You can't stop him with your arms. He's extremely difficult to handle, almost impossible to stop.

You mentioned that acceleration was one of his special powers. Would you say his acceleration ability at that time was one of the greatest strengths in his game?

Yes, his balance and acceleration. Because the game is fast, opponents accelerate past him, and Messi has both balance and strength. He's strong. Small frame, but powerful legs. He has everything: confidence, ball control, positioning, and the ability to carry the ball away from defenders.

I think this aspect is underrated in his game. He's excellent at finding space. We usually talk about what he does with the ball, but as the most explosive player on the pitch, he can exploit space and was the most dangerous and clinical finisher on the field. Normally, a player like this would be tightly marked or surrounded by multiple opponents, but he still managed to get the ball when the timing and space were right. That's an exceptional ability.

Yes, those defenders all wanted to contain him, but none of them ever succeeded. It comes down to his experience and football intelligence. He can dribble directly, and no matter how the ball comes to him, he can stop it precisely. He can do anything, and he can even score with his weaker foot.

When you played against him, did you sense a certain aura about him?

I don't know if you'd agree, but that was the best team I've ever faced. Barcelona at Wembley. Yes, with Xavi, Busquets, Puyol, and Iniesta. I think without Messi, we could have beaten that team. But with Messi, it was impossible. I've never really said this before because they had so many exceptional players, but they had Messi. He's unstoppable. He'd receive the ball in an open space on the right, in an open space on the left, take one shot, and score. It's too difficult to defend against. You play for Manchester United, so you think that no matter how strong a rival team is—whether it's Real Madrid, Juventus, or AC Milan—you feel you can beat them. But when you look back at that Champions League final, the game was genuinely difficult because of Messi. Of course, they had other exceptional players too.

Going back to that match, as a coach, I'd like to hear your thoughts on this. Specifically about the Wembley game. Do you think we could have handled things differently? And I don't just mean playing more attractive football.

I think we needed to play perfectly, and they needed to have an off day, which they didn't. I wish we could have done better. I mean, it's not that different for the two teams in that situation. I think the problem was that Messi was genuinely difficult for us to handle.

We played well that season, but it was difficult for us to match their rhythm. Adjusting to things like marking Messi directly or similar tactics was very challenging. So we could only play the way we played against other teams in the Champions League, and we did that well. But that team was just superior.

I remember sitting in the dressing room, thinking, what just happened? Like at Wembley, I remember you, Scholesy, and I stood there, held hands, and said, "help us out here." Just wanting to escape the frustration. It was embarrassing. I think all my friends would say, "wow, you lost the final badly." This will probably stay with me forever.

Yes, as I said, we needed to play perfectly, and they needed to have a slight dip in form, and Messi would have needed a slight dip in form too. But he rarely has off days in crucial moments, which shows what an exceptional player he is. It was genuinely difficult.

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