Former Liverpool goalkeeper Jerzy Dudek hopes to see Poland prospect and the so-called ‘Little Messi’ Mateusz Musialowski make the grade at the Premier League giants.
It is two years now since the teenager went viral after scoring a goal reminiscent of the Barcelona legend during an U18 clash with Newcastle United.
Skipping past five Newcastle players before firing into the back of the net with his left-boot, the manner in which he created and then finished off a swaggering solo run certainly wasn’t too dissimilar to the Getafe strike which launched Messi’s career two decades ago.
Two years on, however, things have gone a little quiet around Liverpool’s Mateusz Musialowski.
The 19-year-old is yet to make his first-team breakthrough under Jurgen Klopp, and has not quite made the impact expected of him since being promoted to the U23 set-up.
Musialowski, who admits himself to modelling his game on Messi, has just over a year left on his Liverpool contract too. Though Dudek is refusing to give up on his baby-faced compatriot.
Will Mateusz Musialowski make the grade at Liverpool?
“I have seen a few bits of him on YouTube,” Dudek, hero of the 2005 ‘Miracle of Istanbul’ tells The Echo. “He is a very talented player, very skilful. Little Messi.
“Let’s hope he’s going to make it. He has got great potential, but he needs to stay focused and out of the media. This can always be distracting, but he has smart people around him and the club can help him too.”
As former Tottenham youngster Marcus Edwards may tell you, comparisons with argubly the greatest footballer of all time can be more of a hindrance than a help; serving only to pile pressure and unnecessary expectation upon a budding teenager.
Dudek, however, argues that the simple fact Musialowski’s style of play has been likened to that of Lionel Messi’s should be nothing but a complement.
“It depends on the character of the person (whether than can deal with the pressure,” the one-time Real Madrid glovesman adds.
“Some players take this as an opportunity to be bigger and they feel better with this nickname. I don’t think they are going to take it seriously, they are going to work (to make) their own name in the future.
“It is always nice if someone can say you are more or like a young Messi. This is a big compliment. It tells you everything about (Musialowski’s) talent.”
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