I don't think Messi is better than Maradona. And I don't think he's in top 3 either. I'd put him in top 20. And I can name several players in higher positions: Pele, Maradona, Cruyff, Beckenbauer, Ronaldo, Cristiano Ronaldo, Lev Yashin, Ronaldinho, Puskas. One think to consider: would Messi survive (I'm not talking about winning twice) the defenders in Serie A's late 90's? I respect Messi for being a great player but putting him in top 3 in history doesn't sound serious for me.