Former Ghana international Kevin-Prince Boateng has admitted he felt compelled to publicly praise Lionel Messi as the world’s best player in order to secure playing time at Barcelona.
Boateng joined the Spanish giants on loan from Serie A side Sassuolo in a surprise move in January 2019. At his unveiling, the former midfielder described Barcelona as the best club in the world and hailed Messi as the game’s finest player.
However, speaking seven years later, the 38-year-old revealed that those comments were not genuine but rather a condition he felt was necessary to fit in at the Camp Nou.
“When I signed for Barcelona, they told me: your favourite team is Barcelona, and the best player in the world is Lionel Messi. I had to lie at another press conference in order to play, and without that, I would not have been able to play for Barcelona; it would have been impossible,” Boateng said.
“I know this has happened to other players as well. I was sitting there at the press conference, and the first question I was asked was: who is the best player in the world? And I answered: Lionel Messi,” he added during a podcast appearance.
Boateng’s spell at Barcelona was brief and largely uneventful, as he made just four appearances without scoring.
A known Real Madrid supporter and long-time admirer of Cristiano Ronaldo, Boateng later left Barcelona for Fiorentina before returning to his boyhood club, Hertha Berlin, where he retired from professional football in 2023.
