Friday fashion or people who look slow?
scoring goals in qualifying games then going missing when it matters in tournaments is not the actions of a great
Here’s what the people in the know in FIFA had to say as they awarded Lionel Messi, the Golden Ball as Player of the Tournament in the 2014 World Cup.
A true captain and a true matchwinner. There can be no finer compliment to Argentina skipper Lionel Messi, who was so influential in his team’s path to the Final. With some questioning just how influential he would be in Brazil after a demanding season for Barcelona and concerns over a troublesome hamstring, he silenced the doubters by simply being his usual inspirational self. He mesmerised at the Maracana by scoring and setting up another in the 2-1 win over Bosnia and Herzegovina. He scored late on against Iran to send the team through to the Round of 16 and then added two in the 3-2 win over Nigeria. But he didn’t stop there. He played the ball to Angel Di Maria, who scored in the 118th minute of the match against Switzerland to send them through to the quarter-finals. In the semi-finals he stroked home a penalty to help his side defeat the Dutch. And while the personal accolade may be scant reward for a runners-up medal, he can be justifiably proud of his performances at this FIFA World Cup.
he didn’t score in the last 16, Qtrs. ,semis or final
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I stopped reading at this point.
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I remarked that Lionel Messi was chosen as the Player of the 2014 World Cup. Where’s the distortion in that?
Essentially your line is that Messi hasn’t played on a World Cup winning team so he can’t be considered a great of the game. Ferenc Puskas , Johann Cruyff and Paolo Maldini all lost in their lone World Cup final appearances as well. Eusebio, Alfredo di Stefano and Zico didn’t even play in a final. Presumably none of these can be considered as greats of the game using your criteria?
Using your criteria, the likes of George Cohen, Stéphane Guivarc’h, Kleberson and Gennaro Gattuso who started on World Cup winning final teams can be considered as greats of the game.
That’s not my criteria.
There are very few greats of the game and Messi isn’t one.
He plays for one of the traditional footballing superpower nations and regularly bottles it at the business end of major international tournaments - handing the batton over to lesser likes of Di Maria and Mashcerano to lead the charge. A former member of the Argentine backroom team has commented on public record of how Messi dictates the manager where to play him and which team mates to pick.
To be frank about it, his international career has been a failure to date.
@Nembo_Kid started rating Cristiano Ronaldo higher based on a game he only played in for 20 minutes. This is what we’re dealing with here
I did not.
I do think Ronaldo has been a much more important player for Portugal than Messi has for Argentina however.
Neither are in the same ball park as the Brazilian Ronaldo or Maradona though.
Yes you did after the Euros final
Where is Johann Cruyffs World Cup?
I would always have rated Ronaldo higher than Messi on the basis that he’s been much more important to Portugal than Messi has to Argentina, irrespective of the major trophy Ronaldo now has.
Messi’s record in knockout football is poor. He rarely influences these games.
It was there in 78, he just didn’t bother his hole turn up to it.
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Messi is the Argentina team, mate. No other Argentina player has scored for them in 11 months. Ronaldo scored a few goals against Wales alright but its Wales mate. Messi played just as well in Copa America semis against similar opposition
He’s fucking not.
The Argentina team are far more than Messi. Messi is the guy who is meant to lead but likes to sit back and let the lesser likes of Di Maria and Mascherano do the heavy lifting.
Where was Messi when his team could barely score a goal in the knockout stages of the last World Cup?
What has Ronaldo done for Portugal that Messi hasn’t done for Argentina?
Been a decisive factor for an inferior country more than Messi has for a superior one.
