Liverpool great John Barnes has insisted that Nigeria legend Austin Jay-Jay Okocha is better than Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo and Argentina’s Lionel Messi in the area of skilled players.

Barnes believes Okocha, who has already retired from football, is in the same bracket as Brazil and Barcelona legend, Ronaldinho.

“About Jay-Jay, formerly he was in Paris [PSG] when he was young and no one really knew about him, then he came here [England] in the last part of his career. If he had come as a 19, 20, or 21-year-old, it could not have gone any better,” Barnes told SuperSport when speaking about Okocha.

“When you talk of two of the most naturally gifted skilful players, the most skilful player in the world, there are two, Ronaldinho and Jay-Jay Okocha, who is naturally the most skillful player because the things he does on the football field are what you do in the playground; what you do in training you aren’t supposed to do in matches.

“He does it better than [Lionel] Messi, than Cristiano [Ronaldo], than anyone in terms of pure skill.”