Barcelona’s Lionel Messi admitted Cristiano Ronaldo’s hat-trick against Atletico Madrid was a ‘big surprise’ but praised Juventus for a ‘magical night’.
Ronaldo struck three times to not only overturn Juve’s 2-0 deficit against Atleti but also send them into the Champions League quarter-finals, while Messi scored twice and provided two assists as Barcelona thrashed Olympique Lyonnais 5-1.
Barcelona’s Lionel Messi admitted Cristiano Ronaldo’s hat-trick against Atletico Madrid was a ‘big surprise’ but praised Juventus for a ‘magical night’.
Ronaldo struck three times to not only overturn Juve’s 2-0 deficit against Atleti but also send them into the Champions League quarter-finals, while Messi scored twice and provided two assists as Barcelona thrashed Olympique Lyonnais 5-1.
“Who impressed me? So much has happened until now, but what Cristiano did at Juve was a big surprise,” the No 10 told UEFA’s official website.
“I was expecting a different Atletico. Juventus have so much potential. They had a magical night with those three goals.
“Now all the teams are strong. I couldn’t choose [an opponent]. We’ll see who we get in the draw. We’ll prepare as best we can.”