Mascherano delighted by Messi

Barcelona defender Javier Mascherano admires team-mate Lionel Messi after his performance against AC Milan on Tuesday.

The 25-year-old netted twice to give his side the lead as Barca eventually recorded a 4-0 home win to erase the 2-0 loss from the first leg, booking their ticket for the quarter-finals of the Champions League.

“It is very difficult to find adjectives for Leo. I think almost all is said. What is perhaps surprising is his consistency,” Mascherano told Goal.com.

“Doing what he is doing as a professional player for so long every three days is impossible, but he does just that, and I do not think any other player in the history of football has done it before.

“He maybe did not play well for two or three games and everyone had already set the alarm. And that’s good because it is recognised that he has been consistent for five years, but at a superlative level and that is impossible.”

The Argentine also discussed Barca’s miraculous comeback against AC Milan.

“The most important thing is we qualified, which is a big step. We went back to do many things that perhaps in the last few games we did not do,” Mascherano said.

“Things that have characterised the team for so long, like the issue of pressuring the opponent to recover the ball in the attacking half, the intensity with which we press our opponents.

“They were small things, but in the last few games we could not do it, and that’s very noticeable in this team.”

Barcelona will resume domestic action on Sunday when they host Rayo Vallecano.