Lionel Messi
Argentinian football icon Lionel Messi was left in awe after tennis great, Raphael Nadal backed him to win the 2023 Laureus World Sportsman of the Year award.
The two iconic sports athletes have both been nominated for the award due to their impressive achievements in 2022.
Nadal in an Instagram post acknowledged his nomination but stated that Messi rather deserves the award.
“An honour to be nominated again to the Laureus Sportsman of the Year…but…this year…come on Lionel Messi you deserve it,” wrote Nadal on Instagram.
Messi in response wrote: “That such a great sportsman like you thinks of me like that leaves me speechless.
“Thank you so much, Rafael Nadal, you too deserve everything for the way you compete every time you step on the court.
“You are a winner, everyone [the nominations] all deserve the Laureus Sport this year, that’s the truth!!!”
Nadal has previously spoken about how happy he was to see Messi win the World Cup.
“That someone so great reaches the culmination with a title that was missing, of this calibre, with all that it means for Argentina, it seemed fair to me, I enjoyed it and I was moved,” he told AS in December.
“Without supporting Argentina, when Messi scored the third goal, tears came to my eyes, because of the emotion of seeing someone so great achieve what they were missing and someone who had suffered so much to achieve it.”
Nadal and Messi have been nominated for the award alongside Kylian Mbappe, Max Verstappen, Armand Duplantis, and Steph Curry.
Nadal won Australian Open and French Open and finished 2022 as World number 2 while Messi's landmark achievement was leading Argentina to win the World Cup.
The Laureus World Sports Awards is held annually to acknowledge individuals and teams from the world of sports.
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