Gross reckons Messi can hold hands with God after magical display

LIONEL MESSI earned himself comparisons with Diego Maradona after his brilliant performance for Barcelona in the Champions League.

After scoring a hat-trick against Valencia in La Liga on Sunday, Messi netted twice and helped create another to inspire Barca to a 4-0 victory over VfB Stuttgart at the Nou Camp and send the holders through to the quarter-finals 5-1 on aggregate.

"I think he is certainly one of the best in the world and people are right to make comparisons with Diego Maradona," Stuttgart coach Christian Gross said. "It's amazing when you think he is still only 22. He's just a fantastic player."

Argentina forward Messi also earned effusive praise from Barca coach Pep Guardiola.

"The best players are always in the thick of the action," said Guardiola.

"We want him to stay with us because he's the best and we wouldn't swap him for anyone."

Messi's first goal came in the 13th minute when the FIFA World Player of the Year raced at the Stuttgart defence and smashed the ball past Jens Lehmann into the roof of the net. His perfectly-weighted pass nine minutes later set Yaya Toure free on the left to cross for Pedro to score Barca's second and Messi struck again on the hour with a clinical drive from the edge of the penalty area.

In the other tie, leading 1-0 from the first leg against Olympiakos, Bordeaux scored a goal in the fifth minute from a free kick by Yoann Gourcuff. Kostas Mitroglou replied for the Greeks but Marouane Chamakh added a second for a 3-1 overall scoreline for the French club.