AC Milan loan signing David Beckham says Barcelona star Lionel Messi is the nearest current player to Diego Maradona.

"Messi is one of the best players I've played against and also one of the finest players I've ever seen," Beckham told FIFA's official website.

"For a little player, he's so talented. He's the closest player to Maradona that you can get, and he even plays in a similar passionate way too.

"He's successful and a really good person as well. I'm sure he'll go on to be even more successful in the future."

See Messi messing around at a restaurant: