Watford striker Gerard Deulofeu admitted he thought that his hat-trick against Cardiff City earned him the title of king of the weekend, until he saw Lionel Messi’s sensational performance against Sevilla.

The Argentine was on fire for the Catalans, scoring a treble himself to lead his side to a comeback win.

“I thought I was the king of the weekend until I saw Messi at the [Estadio Sanchez] Pizjuan,” Deulofeu said to El Transistor on Onda Cero.

“He’s an incredible player. I enjoy watching him a lot.

“I have an anecdote about him… I remember passing him a ball that was like a stone and I was going to apologise immediately, but he took it so incredibly.”

Deulofeu did not enjoy any fortunes during either of his stints with Barcelona, but he does not regret anything about his short time at the Catalan club.

“I enjoyed my time at Barcelona even if it was short,” Deulofeu explained.

“I played alongside the best but I also had to find my own career.

“At Barcelona I was at home, I was at the best team in the world but I didn’t feel important.

“I’m a special player, I have no patience and I need to play. On top of that it was a World Cup year and I needed to leave to find more minutes.

“I can’t regret thinking about the past. If I did, I wouldn’t be having this season at Watford.”