Australia star Keanu Baccus, who was born in South Africa, has revealed how challenging it was to attempt to stop Argentina's Lionel Messi, whom he "kicked a couple times" in their 2022 FIFA World Cup round of 16 tie.
The defensive midfielder, who is the younger brother of former Kaizer Chiefs player Kearyn Baccus, was called up for Australia's 2022 FIFA World Cup campaign.
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The Socceroos player only featured from the bench in the group stage as he seemingly struggled to jump ahead of Aaron Mooy and Jackson Irvine in the team's engine room.
However, head coach Graham Arnold surprisingly decided to call on Baccus' services to help nullify Argentina's attack in their round of 16 tie.
Messi had other plans, though, scoring his first World Cup knockout goal in his 1 000th appearance for club and country as the Albiceleste secured their passage to the quarter-finals with a 2-1 win.
Durban-born Baccus has now shed light on the difficulty of trying to mark the PSG attacker.
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"He's just special. To be honest, he looks fake on the field," he said, per The Herald Scotland.
"A bit like a wax statue, to be honest.
"I was trying to learn from him, but it's hard when you're in the thick of the action.
"He just looks surreal. There's not a blemish on his face.
"Then there's the way he plays and how he sees the game.
"He just sees the game differently in his head and it's special to see now. Imagine what it was like a couple of years ago.
"You end up thinking you shouldn't be so close to him.
"He's such an icon to the Argentine fans. It's crazy to see the passion they have towards him.
"I didn't really stand in awe of him though. I ended up kicking him a couple of times instead.
"I didn't mean to hurt him, but I'm a front-foot player and I wanted to stick to him and the whole team, and show we're there to compete."
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WATCH: MESSI SCORES AGAINST AUSTRALIA IN ROUND OF 16
