Scott Arfield was the one Rangers player released at the end of last season who was maybe a little hard done to but now that he is playing against Lionel Messi, he probably isn’t that bothered.
The 34-year old Charlotte FC midfielder came face to face with the GOAT recently and came off worse in a 4-0 defeat, the mercurial Argentinian the unsurprising star of the show.
Speaking to The Athletic, Scott Arfield has been reflecting on life at and after Rangers with a brief encounter with Lionel Messi proving that MLS is no retirement home.
With nine goals last season, Arfield was one of just a few players who could hold their head up high on their departure from Ibrox.
Scott Arfield has post-Rangers Lionel Messi introduction
His goalscoring form has continued into MLS where he has netted three times already for Charlotte in 11 appearances.
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One, not-so-successful outing came against Messi’s Inter Miami with the former Gers star explaining that the veteran playmaker is still a cut above the rest:
“I tried to tackle him and he made me cuddle my team-mate — there’s context to that. I’d been running about trying to get a touch and he had been standing still.
“He just waits in pockets and then when he gets the ball, he can manipulate it at full speed.
“He can completely switch it on from 0 to 100.
“Playing against Messi, Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba was incredible. Messi was sublime, Busquets phenomenal.”
Scott Arfield was a fans’ favourite at Rangers and brought something that almost no other midfielder was capable of on a consistent basis – goals.
His impact from the start of games might have diminished as he got older, however, as shown by his time so far in the States, he hasn’t lost his uncanny knack of being in the right place at the right time.
The clip is typical Lionel Messi and Arfield isn’t the first nor will he be the last to be sent chasing shadows and cuddling teammates.