'It's like something from the Playstation' - Suarez lauds 'unique' Messi after sublime Espanyol display

Joe Wright

'It's like something from the Playstation' - Suarez lauds 'unique' Messi after sublime Espanyol display image

Luis Suarez compared Lionel Messi's match-winning display against Espanyol to something more commonly seen on a video game.

The Argentina star produced a sensational performance to help the home side to a 4-1 victory in the Catalan derby at Camp Nou on Sunday, a result that lifts them back into second in La Liga.

Two dazzling solo runs from Messi helped Suarez - who gave Barca the lead in the first half - and Jordi Alba to score before he rounded off the match with a sublime finish following Suarez's clever chipped pass.

Messi & Iniesta make football a more beautiful game - and all fans should enjoy them

And his team-mate claimed he would have preferred to see Messi finish his brilliant piece of play with a goal, rather than have his shot saved by Roberto to give the Uruguayan an easy tap-in.

"The derby games are always beautiful. We won and we played well and we recovered a good feeling," Suarez told Movistar Plus.

"I would have preferred that, rather than scoring the second goal myself, Messi could have finished it after his great piece of play. 

"It's like something from the Playstation. He's a unique player."

Andres Iniesta, who set up Suarez's opener with a superb long pass from his own half, was delighted to see Messi shine brightest in an excellent all-round display from the champions.

"It was an intense derby, that's for sure," he said. "We played a good game and we're happy to have won the last league game of the year.

Messi becomes Catalan derby top scorer

"In a collective where everyone is doing well, it's important that the individual talents - like those of Messi, who is a sensational player - come out and flourish.

"We feel good and we've finished the year happy."

Joe Wright

Joe Wright is a Senior Editor at Sporting News, managing global soccer and the UK team. He was previously a sub editor and writer for Goal.com before spending six years as part of the Stats Perform editorial news service, covering major global sports including football, tennis, boxing, NBA, rugby union and athletics. Joe has extensive experience covering some of the biggest events in football, including two UEFA Champions League finals, Euro 2016, the Confederations Cup 2017 and the 2018 World Cup, which included the final in Moscow.