William Troost-Ekong has faced two of the greatest footballers of all time, but neither troubled him as much as one player.
The 31-year-old defender has enjoyed a colourful career, lining up for top-flight sides in eight different countries, including the Premier League with Watford, as well as representing Nigeria at the 2018 World Cup.
And while his far-reaching football experiences have seen him lock horns with sporting icons Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi, Troost-Ekong did not select either player as his toughest opponent.
Instead, he named ex-Atalanta and current Torino striker Duvan Zapata as the striker that caused him the most trouble, dating back to his time with Serie A side Udinese between 2018 and 2020.
Appearing on talkSPORT’s Hawksbee and Jacobs, he said: “There was one striker at Atalanta called Duvan Zapata, a Colombian striker, and it was in 2019, and I just couldn’t get near him.
“Too strong, too fast, a great finisher, and just his awareness in the box. I think he scored quite a lot of goals against me that season, and he was my nightmare, my nemesis.
“I would have to give it to him, but there’s too many great strikers to name, to be honest.”
This isn’t the first time that a legendary defender has singled out Zapata as a particularly tricky opponent.
In October, former Italy and Juventus star Leonardo Bonucci revealed that he ‘couldn’t sleep at night’, ahead of encounters with the Colombian goalscorer.
It’s fair to say that Zapata inflicted some misery on Troost-Ekong during their Serie A match-ups.
In one 2018 clash against Udinese, the forward netted a hat-trick to give Atalanta a 3-1 win, with Troost-Ekong spending the entire 90 minutes as his direct opponent.
Overall, Zapata scored 82 goals and made 43 assists in 191 appearances for the Italian outfit between 2018 and 2024.
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And while neither Messi nor Ronaldo may have come out on top as the 31-year-old’s toughest adversaries, Troost-Ekong still had plenty of praise for the iconic pair, having faced both at various points in his career.
Currently a league rival of Al Nassr captain Ronaldo, having signed for Saudi Pro League side Al Kholood in August, he has also played against him with former sides Watford and Udinese, when the Portugal captain was at Manchester United and Juventus.
Meanwhile, his encounter with Messi came at the 2018 World Cup, who scored a fine individual goal to help Argentina to a 2-1 victory over Troost-Ekong’s Nigeria in the tournament’s group stage.
And the Barcelona great certainly left a lasting impression on the Super Eagles centre-back, who admitted he was unable to cope with his phenomenal abilities.
On Messi, Troost-Ekong said: “One word, probably unplayable. It was something special.
“You find yourself standing there thinking: ‘God, this bloke’s good!’
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“I think when he scored the opening goal against us, it was like it was in slow motion.
“You couldn’t really do anything, you just had to watch it. And close to cheering because it was fantastic. And then you remember you’re on the other team.”
This then prompted Troost-Ekong to explain the key difference that he feels separates the Argentine World Cup-winning captain from his great rival Ronaldo.
Highlighted Messi’s footballing brain as one of his great assets, he said: “It’s a different quality. You can really see that he’s just reading the game.
“And when it comes to life, then there’s not much you can do.”
Despite this, when asked to choose the better player between Messi and Ronaldo, Troost-Ekong refused to give answer, pointing to his upcoming league clash with the Portuguese star in March.
He replied: “This is difficult to say. I’ll probably have to face Ronaldo again later this year. I don’t want to get him mad.”