EXCLUSIVE: Javier Saviola on Messi's greatness, Yamal's potential and much more

Saviola took a break from his busy schedule to talk exclusively to Flashscore about several hot topics, such as the rise of Lamine Yamal (16) and comparisons with Lionel Messi (36), plus the way Manchester City - which he considers to be the best-looking team these days.

Having retired in 2015, some say too soon, Saviola continues to live for the game. With his coaching qualifications under his belt, he has been living in Andorra for the last eight years and is waiting for an opportunity to return to the dugout.

Flashscore News: What's going on in your life?

Saviola: "I'm currently working in media, as a commentator for Barca's Champions League matches. Last year I was with Barca's youth A team as assistant coach alongside Oscar Lopez. It was a unique, spectacular experience."

You're always linked to football, do you want to be a coach? 

"When I finished playing in 2015 at River, I went to do the coaching course at the RFEF and I was waiting for an opportunity. The Barca thing was brilliant because I love training players, from 15 to 19 years old, with what it means to be in La Masia, with such a great philosophy and that so many great players have come out of there. The responsibility was huge to keep looking for new challenges with those players."

Was there anyone special who stood out above the rest? 

"We had the opportunity to have Lamine Yamal and three or four players who are now in the first team and coming through in professional football."

Is it true what they say about Yamal? 

"Yes, yes. He's one of those players who are different, who don't come along very often. We were very surprised in every way by his maturity, his way of seeing football when he was 15 years old at the time. We already saw something special in him."

He was also Messi's teammate when he was very young. Do you see similarities?

"It's unlikely that anything similar to Leo will ever happen again, but we did see something similar with how everything was going. When I came to Barca when I was 19 I went to see him (Messi) in training and the same thing happens to you, seeing something that will surely be unmatched.

"And with Lamine, the same thing happened to us. It's something different, something we're not used to seeing, with so much personality, exquisite dribbling, putting the team on his shoulders at 15 years old when there were teammates of 18 and 19, and we saw special things.

"Leo is one of the best players in history and Lamine, if he sets his mind to it, will be at a very, very high level."

A golden Argentine generation

Looking back, Jose Pekerman and Frank Rijkaard both dropped you. You were left without playing in a World Cup and you missed out on the best of Barcelona - Pep Guardiola's side. Any hard feelings?

"With Jose (Pekerman), the subject has been discussed a lot. In the beginning, we all wanted to play and we were ambitious, and even more so having performed as well as we did at the World Cup. That team was capable of significant things -  that is the thorn in the side of all the members of that generation, which was spectacular, and young. It was a mixture of the best players of the last 20 years.

"I have a different kind of relationship with Rijkaard. He told me in my last year that he had other players, he was very honest with me."

Your heart is in Barca but you played for Real Madrid. Is that the most important club in the world?

"Barca was my first European club, I am very fond of them, of their people, of everything they gave me. But then Madrid is amazing, it is among the three biggest in the world because of its history, because of what it is.

"To be in the corridors of the Bernabeu, the history of the crest, so many players who have played in its history... It's nothing new to say, and even more so having been inside and seeing what it is, Madrid is something amazing."

An admirer of Guardiola and Alvarez

Which team do you consider to be the best in the world right now?

"Manchester City is the one I like the most, because of the way Guardiola plays, the ambition of the players to reach the opposition goal. Every time you watch them you know something good is going to happen, it grabs you to see such a competitive team all the time."

And who is the best player in the world? 

"Leo Messi. He's something unique."

What about a footballer today who resembles the player Saviola?

"If I had to choose another player - Julian (Alvarez). I think he's similar, apart from just being an impressive goalscorer.

"I saw the last time he scored and I was surprised at how little space he had to score the goal he did. He's a player who doesn't need a lot of space or great leg movement to shoot and that's very difficult for defenders to stop."

Thank you very much for your time, Javier.

"To you, too. It wasn't an interview, it felt more like a chat in a cafe. Nice to meet you and see you next time."