Giorgio Chiellini once claimed the best way to defend Lionel Messi was to ‘make the sign of the cross’… but will the rough and ready defender be saying his prayers Sunday as they face each other in MLS for the first time?

LAFC defender Giorgio Chiellini once chose Cristiano Ronaldo over Lionel Messi. The Inter Miami star will try to make him regret that decision this weekend.

Inter Miami travel to LAFC in the MLS on Sunday, where two former European football titans Messi and Chiellini come face-to-face for the first time in the United States.

Of course, it won’t be the first time that the football veterans have clashed with the two who play many battles on the European and international stages.

Still, the former Italy international might prefer to face Messi’s greatest rival Ronaldo.

In a quick question and answer session with ESPN last year, the 39-year-old was asked to choose between the two football greats and he definitely chose the Portuguese star.

However, as a former Juventus teammate, Chiellini may have been slightly biased in his choice.

In fact, the defender seems full of praise for Messi as he welcomes him to MLS.

Messi has taken the MLS by storm, helped Inter Miami clinch the first trophy in the Leagues Cup, stage a US Open Cup clash and score 11 goals in 10 appearances.

But while American football fans—and players—were impressed by the seven-time Ballon d’Or winner, it was nothing less than what Chiellini had expected.

“I wasn’t surprised,” the Italian recently told reporters when asked about Messi’s fast start in the US.

“The problem may be that this league was surprised, not me. I think they need to do something better to contain Messi.

“If you think Messi is a normal player, that’s a big mistake. It means you’ve never seen him in the last 15 years. If Sergio (Busquets) has the ball and you don’t mark Messi… you may not have a TV at home.’

He hopes he has the answers to keep the Argentinian in check in Los Angeles on Sunday.

Messi and co. will travel to Los Angeles in a desperate need to win to keep hopes of making the playoffs alive.

But the winner of the World Cup and European Championship once admitted that sometimes even he does not know how to defend the striker.

“In recent years, the role of the defender has been re-evaluated,” Chiellini told Eurosport Italia. ‘Everyone must understand their role well.

‘Experience helps you to read certain situations better and to make fewer behavioral mistakes. Knowledge of the opponent is also essential, both individually and as a team.

How do you mark Cristiano Ronaldo? You don’t try to leave him alone, don’t let him shoot his right foot. And Lionel Messi? Just make the sign of the cross.”

His prayers clearly didn’t work when the two last met at the Finalissima in June 2022, as Argentina walked away with a 3-0 win over the Italians at London’s Wembley Stadium.

His move to LAFC followed the triumph, with Chiellini confirming his ‘next chapter’ was in MLS, marking his first club outside Italy after 18 years with Juventus.

Chiellini, European champion with Italy and nine-time Serie A winner with Juve, joined LAFC in saying the Azzurri’s inability to qualify for last winter’s World Cup in Qatar paved the way for the US.

“I came here to enjoy this competition, to discover new things, to understand what football is like now, at what level, in the US. And also to understand a different view of the world of sports and the sport here. It’s a huge difference,” he told the Los Angeles Times.

His final season with the Old Lady marked the first time in a decade that he failed to lift at least one trophy, but he corrected that mark on his record last October when, alongside Gareth Bale, he helped LAFC win the MLS Cup win.

He played in 11 of LAFC’s last 16 regular season games, starting nine of them, and participated in two of the team’s three playoff games as LAFC also lifted the Supporters’ Shield.

But success is seemingly not the only thing Chiellini brought to the MLS club, with his joy and energy evident on the pitch.

“He takes things very seriously, in the gym, in practices and games,” teammate Kellyn Acosta also told the Los Angeles Times.

“His energy is tremendous for us, a man who is very vocal. He’s been through it all from the Champions League to the World Cups and playing at the highest level for so many years. And he continues to play at a high level.

Player, coach, mentor, brother, friend. He does it all.’

But the loyal Juve has left more than just a mark on Europe, just ask Bukayo Saka.

Chiellini left England fans furious when he brought down Saka as the Arsenal star attempted to race to the last third in the 2020 European Championship finals before Italy prevailed against the Three Lions on penalties.

He also claimed that he cursed Saka before missing the decisive penalty in the Euro 2020 penalty.

It summed up Chiellini as a player. Although a smiling figure off the field, he is a wily, old-fashioned defender who will do almost anything to defend his goal.

He is always willing to put his body at risk for the sake of his team and has broken his nose five times in the line of duty.

He often looks like a pantomime villain with his gruff persona on the pitch, but in reality he has a heart of gold that made him the perfect captain for the Azzurri.

Chiellini retired from international football last summer after making 517 appearances in 22 years, including his debut as a teenager.

His resume at national level is also impressive to say the least with a record nine Scudetti at Juventus, five Coppa Italia and five Supercoppa Italiana titles.

He has already brought that veni, vidi, vici attitude to LAFC, but he can also conquer the GOAT.