Claudio Cannigia: 'You can't give all the responsibility to Messi'

The former Argentine forward, Claudio Caniggia, believes Messi "doesn’t get the same support from his teammates as Maradona did."

Argentina's 23-man World Cup squad in 2014 had in its ranks - besides star forward Lionel Messi - Gonzalo Higuain, Sergio Aguero, Angel Di Maria and  Sergio Romero and the star-studded lineup delivered on its promise as the South American giant made it to the finals, only to lose to Germany 0-1 in extra-time after a goalless 90 minutes.

And former Argentine forward, Claudio Caniggia, believes Messi - referred to as Diego Maradona's heir apparent - "doesn’t get the same support from his teammates as Maradona did. I think that’s true."

Maradona, who helped Argentina to the 1986 World Cup title, scored five goals in the tournament, including two in the quarterfinal against England— the 'Hand of God' and the 'Goal of the Century'. The diminutive forward represented Argentina in four World Cups - 1982, 86, 90 and 94.

Cannigia, part of the 1990 and 1994 Argentina World Cup squad, never tried to emulate Maradona. "I knew that Maradona was the complete footballing genius, but I didn’t think about keeping up with him," he said.

"Every player has a responsibility, even those who don’t play much. You can’t give all the responsibility to Messi, because then what’s the point of you being there? Imagine if I’d thought in 1990 that the world champions had to carry me through. No! Carry us? We’re in it together," he added.