Andrea Pirlo has revealed he congratulated Marco Verratti via text message after his compatriot's stunning performance during the 4-0 win over Barcelona.
Verratti helped the Ligue 1 champions to a resounding thrashing of their Spanish counterparts, with PSG taking a dominant lead to the Nou Camp on Wednesday ahead of the Champions Leaguesecond leg tie.
Speaking to L'Equipe, as quoted bySport, Pirlo revealed he congratulated Verratti after the PSG man played a crucial role in dominating the likes of the Sergio Busquets, Andres Iniesta and Andre Gomes.
"After the game against Barça, I congratulated him via an SMS," the New York City midfielder said.
"The same night he said to me that my message had been the one he appreciated the most. And then I said to him 'You are the No.1 now because I'm at the end of my career.'
"Verratti is a great player. He is the future of Italian and European football for the next 10 years. He plays more or less in my position, although we're different in our styles of play.
"He plays shorter passes, dribbles more than me and keeps the ball more. He's the best Italian player today and tomorrow. We have had goo moments together with the national team.
"They say sometimes that good players can't play together, but if everyone adds what they can, then it works. And that is what happened with us."
PSG are widely expected to qualify for the Champions League quarter-finals, while the likes of Bayern Munich, Real Madrid and Juventus are also well placed to reachthe next round.