Andrea Pirlo says this Malta midfielder is the toughest opponent he's EVER faced - and he's playing against England
[source]In fact Pirlo named him as the toughest opponent he's EVER played against - an extraordinary accolade given the world class stars the midfield maestro has faced.
The 37-year-old - now with New York City FC - found Andre Schembri so demanding he told teammates not to pass him the ball because he couldn't get away from him and has dedicated a chapter to him in his autobiography.
In an interview with the Scottish Mail on Sunday in September, Schembri recalled their first meeting.
He said: "I was marking him, which is what our coach told me to do. I don't think I was more than five metres away from him the full match.
"During the game, he didn't speak to me, but he was speaking to the Italian defenders, saying to them: "Don't give me the ball, this d***head is with me all the time". I understand Italian, so I knew exactly what he was saying!
"And you could see their defenders were surprised because normally the first thing they do when they get the ball is look for Pirlo. But our idea was to stop him dictating the game. So they were a bit mixed up.