Juventus goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon believes midfielder Paul Pogba is as good as Barcelona's Lionel Messi and Real Madrid's Cristiano Ronaldo.
And Buffon wants Pogba to show he is worth the "crazy money" only Manchester City and a handful of clubs would be able to offer for signing him when Juventus travel to the Etihad Stadium on Tuesday night.
Pogba has remained at Juve despite reportedly attracting interest from City, Barcelona and Chelsea this summer, after becoming one of the most coveted players in the game.
Buffon believes it is right that the France midfielder has caught the eye, and backed his decision to stay with the Bianconeri.
The shot-stopper hopes the 22-year-old can deliver a match-winning performance against City as Juve bid to get their stuttering season off the ground.
"He needs to be our leader with his quality and technique," Buffon said at a news conference in Manchester.
"We're all really enthusiastic about this game, first because it's our first time at this stadium and then because City are one of the candidates to win the Champions League this season, which means it's a good test for us to see where we are in Europe."
As part of the Juve team which surprised many by reaching the final last season, Pogba certainly positioned himself as one of Europe's leading talents last season.
Buffon told the Daily Mirror that there was "nobody better in the world" than the former Manchester United prodigy. "And I include Messi and Ronaldo in that," added the 37-year-old.
"When you are at that level, stories are always going to be written about your future. Manchester City are one of three or four clubs in the world that can pay what I call crazy money, so it's only natural they were interested in him.
"He made his intentions to stay with Juventus very clear though, and that was important for us, but also important for football. It showed that money doesn't always win."
Buffon also spoke about his Manchester City counterpart, saying Joe Hart is "one of the top three goalkeepers in the world."
"He had the period where he made some mistakes and was dropped, but he needed that," Buffon said. "I've always said you need to be a bit of a masochist to be a top goalkeeper and that period would have made Joe that.
"Since his return to the team after being dropped, you won't think of a better goalkeeper in the world. It's not just about the saves he makes, but the way he organises with such confidence. He is a real leader."
Buffon, whose side will also come up against Borussia Monchengladbach and Sevilla in Group D, added: "I understand why people are excited about this game, but there are 18 points to fight for, not three.
"'Group of death' or whatever people want to call it is not relevant. I don't pay attention to names like that, but clearly it is a very hard group. The reality is that two very good clubs will not qualify and we will be fighting for every point to make sure one of them are not us."