Pique: Messi is the greatest, I cried when he left Barcelona
The transfer of Lionel Messi from Barcelona to Paris Saint-Germain caused global consternation, notably among Gerard Pique.
Lionel Messi's departure from Barcelona put Gerard Pique in tears, but the defender thinks he understands why his old teammate chose Paris Saint-Germain.
Messi's 21-year affiliation with the Catalan club, including 16 years as a member of the senior squad, came to an end in August when he joined the Ligue 1 side on a free transfer.
With 672 goals in 778 games, the Argentina international won every trophy achievable with Barca and retired as the club's all-time leading scorer.
Last year's exit was a great surprise at the time since the Catalan heavyweights' financial circumstances prevented them from agreeing to a new contract under LaLiga's pay rules.
Pique and Messi were teammates at Barcelona's La Masia academy for 13 years, when the defender returned from a loan spell at Manchester United.
Pique revealed how difficult it was for him to see a close friend leave United in an interview with former United teammate Gary Neville.
"I cried when Messi left. I cried for him," Pique said on The Overlap podcast. "For the career he had at Barca, it would have been great if he had stayed until the end of his career.
"I can understand why he couldn't renew. The club was suffering a lot economically because of the past president and how he managed the club.
"At the end of the day, these are things that happen in life. Sometimes you make a decision and things don't work out.
"For Barcelona and the fans, Messi was like a god. It would have been great if he stayed."
For Barcelona, Messi was personally involved in 937 goals, with his most productive season coming in 2011-12, when he scored 73 goals in all competitions and assisted on another 28.
Despite the fact that the seven-time Ballon d'Or winner was the face of Barcelona's trophy-laden decade, Pique says Messi could not have done it alone.
"Lionel Messi is the best player in the history of the game," he said.
"Messi was Barcelona's best player. I've always said that we had Messi to win titles, but we also had to have a good team. A single player cannot win titles."
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