Amsterdam: Dutch football legend Johan Cryuff believes Barcelona could not have beaten Juventus 3-1 in the Champions League final without their Argentine forward Lionel Messi.


Lionel Messi. Pic/AFP 

Messi was expected to put up a grand show in Berlin but he failed to score. While Ivan Rakitic, Luis Suarez and Neymar all had their names on the score sheet, the Argentine was tied down by Juventus for much of the game on Saturday.