Joao Pedro Believes Florian Wirtz is Better Passer Than Lionel Messi

Lionel Messi, who is spending the twilight period of his career in Major League Soccer (MLS) with Inter Miami, was loosely linked with a move to Liverpool in recent weeks – but Chelsea striker Joao Pedro is of the belief that Arne Slot already has a better passer than the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner at his disposal.

There’s no doubt about Messi‘s status as one of the best to ever grace the turf. Ever since he replaced Deco in the 82nd minute of Barcelona‘s 1-0 win over Espanyol in 2004, fans were captivated by the Argentine’s dancing and dazzling, which often left defenders in the wake of his genius.

A bonafide legend in footballing circles, Messi has never played for a team in England – but his stints for Barca and Paris Saint-Germain in Europe prove that he is the crème de la crème. His passing is one of the 38-year-old’s many finest attributes, but Pedro believes that a Liverpool player is a better passer.

Joao Pedro Believes Liverpool Man Is Better at Passing Than Lionel Messi

In truth, as evidenced by his ridiculous number of club assists (383) throughout his career, there have been very few better passers of a football than Messi, who is widely regarded as one of the greatest wingers in football history. Long or short, you could put your money on the seasoned forward being precise when he opts to find a teammate rather than jinking between the opposition.

But he isn’t world football’s best passer in the eyes of Pedro, who instead named a current Premier League player when he was asked to build his ultimate F50 player in an interview with Sports Illustrated.

Given a number of different players for each attribute (defending, physicality, shooting, pace, dribbling and chaos), the Brazilian had to build what he considers to be the perfect all-round footballer, and he snubbed Messi when quizzed on who he believes is the best passer from the collection of names he was given.

The Brazilian, who cost Chelsea £60 million in the summer, had to pick one of Florian Wirtz, Ryan Gravenberch, Lionel Messi, Rayan Cherki, Lamine Yamal or himself and he (perhaps surprisingly) opted for Liverpool’s £116 million summer addition. Pedro said: “I think Wirtz. Of course, he had a lot of assists last season.”

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Bayer Leverkusen‘s talisman-in-chief before his big-money move to Anfield this summer, Wirtz initially struggled to find his feet in England but is, slowly but surely, beginning to showcase why he was such a sought-after talent pre-Liverpool. In 2025/26, he’s plundered 11 goal contributions in all competitions.

Before breaking his duck, the German playmaker went 12 Premier League matches without providing a single goal or assist before forcing an own goal in a 1-1 draw with Sunderland in early December.

A slow start to life on the red half of Merseyside has been followed by Wirtz’s form improving drastically and the statistics prove that he is being let down by his teammates on the whole. His expected assists (xA) tally stands at 90.9% – the top 90.9% of any player in the division, according to Rousing the Kop – and he’s also created a total of 37 chances.

While there is definitely evidence behind the fact that his Liverpool teammates (barring Wirtz’s fellow summer recruit, Hugo Ekitike) have been far from fruitful in the final third, many expected better from a player who held the British transfer record before that was broken by Alexander Isak’s arrival later in the summer transfer window.

So, Wirtz – in the eyes of the Chelsea man – takes the cake in the passing department, but who is joining him? Pedro was given the option between teammate Malo Gusto, Nuno Mendes, Dean Huijsen and Cristian Romero when picking the best defender in world football. He picked Arsenal mainstay Gabriel Magalhaes and then waxed lyrical about his compatriot: “Because we’ve played together in the national team. He’s tough to play against him as well when you play him in the league.”

Although Wirtz pipped Messi to the post earlier in the clip, the Argentine fended off competition from the likes of Mohamed Salah, Son Heung-min and Alexander Isak when it came down to shooting. Salah, however, was named as Pedro’s agent of chaos.

From a pace perspective, Pedro was given some of Europe’s best – Lamine Yamal, Luis Diaz, Bradley Barcola and Rodrygo – to pick from, but he stayed true to his roots and picked fellow countryman Gabriel Martinelli, who has played for London rivals Arsenal since making the switch from his homeland in 2019. He said:

Barcelona and Spain wonderkid Yamal, widely regarded as one of the best players in world football, was chosen as the best dribbler in world football by Pedro. “Last season, he showed his skills,” he said before choosing himself when asked about who would take on the physical side of his ‘perfect footballer’ before referencing a 50/50 battle he came out on top of against Tottenham Hotspur.

All statistics per WhoScored – correct as of 24/01/2026