The former midfielder recalls how the Argentine star took the first team to pieces while still a teenager, while not even fouls would slow down the phenomenon.
Ludovic Giuly has recalled how the Barcelona team was "destroyed" by a 16-year-old Lionel Messi in training.
Then Barcelona coach Frank Rijkaard promoted Messi to the first team to make up the numbers on the training pitch during an international break.
Giuly - who won two La Liga titles and the Champions League with Barca - was thoroughly impressed by what he saw at the time.
"Messi was only 16, but he destroyed us all in a training session," Giuly was quoted as saying by Sport.