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Football

28th Jan 2016

Xavi has named Lionel Messi’s natural successor at Barcelona

'The Korean Messi'

Kevin McGillicuddy

If anyone would know, the Spanish pass-master should.

Xavi Hernandez may be a long way away from Barcelona now, but the Spain international, having played in one of the best club sides of all time, would you feel recognise a talent when he sees it.

And thankfully he’s not shy about telling the world about the latest product that is about to drop off the end of the La Masia talent line in Spain.

Lionel Messi isn’t finished yet, but there will come a point in the next 2-3 years when Barcelona will have to start thinking of life after the little Argentine.

But according to the World cup winner and four time Champions League medalist, the club already have have a like-for-like replacement in a teenager called Seung-Woo Lee.

The 18-year-old is currently playing with the club’s U19 side, and he is expected to make a breakthrough to the club’s first team by the end of this season.

Xavi, speaking earlier this week, feels the player has a special quality that could make him one of the world’s very best,

“In one or two years he will be in the first team.”

Woo-Lee is understood to be highly rated at Barcelona and has only recently started playing with the club’s U19 side where he is yet to score.

However his previous record suggest that won’t take long as he’s already broken one of Messi’s longest records, scoring an outrageous 39 goals in 29 games at U-13 level.

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