The prolific Argentine attacker netted both goals in the Catalans' 2-0 Champions League win over Ajax at the Amsterdam ArenA on Wedneday evening, thus equalling Real Madrid legend Raul's all-time record of 71 goals in the competition, and Mascherano had nothing but praise for his compatriot.
"It’s huge that Messi has equalled Raul," the versatile defender told the official Barcelona website.
"That shows what Leo Messi is doing as a player. He’s equalled a legend like Raul, such a historic player, and he’s still only young.
"We know that he’s got a long future ahead of him and that’s very important for Leo."
The defender then went on to voice his satisfaction with Barcelona's win over the Eredivisie champions, which sealed the Catalans' place in the last 16, but acknowledged they still have room for improvement.
"“I’m happy with the win," the 30-year-old said. "We knew perfectly well the team did a lot of good things, but we are also aware that we need to improve. We’re on the right track and hopefully this will all serve for the future.
"Ajax controlled the ball in the first half and if they didn’t generate situations of danger, they did generate situations of control. We found it hard to adapt, but then Messi scored and we felt calmer.
"We knew we’d just lost two games and what our opponent was doing started creating doubts among the team. So, it’s very important that we were able to win this game."
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