10 - Lionel Messi - v1

[Juan03]

Look at the heat maps in the World Cup section on ESPN Soccernet (or another website if you can find them). Compare Messi's position to the rest of his teammates, especially Higuain and Tevez; he went as far forwards as they did. By my estimation, he was playing in roughly the same areas he plays for Barcelona this year when he's in the center (with Pedro and Villa on the wings). Heck, compare Messi's heat maps to Diego Forlan, who often dropped deeper or wider. Not to mention that Messi took more shots per game than anyone other than Asamoah Gyan, with none of the shots from beyond 30 yards. Messi's typical position in the World Cup justifies calling him a striker.

I was talking about his performances in the World Cup. I wasn't saying that he'll never have good games for his national team; I was saying that he didn't play well in WC 2010. I cannot and will not judge players based on what they hypothetically could have done; no one can. When evaluating a player's performance in a given game/tournament, it's necessary to ignore the accomplishments of the player outside that game/tournament. Wayne Rooney and Cristiano Ronaldo are considered great players, and both had excellent seasons for their club teams leading up to the WC; that doesn't make their WC performances any better.

Messi played more of an attacking midfield position for his NT well behind Iguain that's for sure, he had a decent world cup, not a bad one lol, statistics berely resemble his wold cup performances, he coul've easlily had 4-5 goals if it werent for the superb saves of the other teams' keepers and the crossbar, not to mention 80% of Argentina's goals were caused by an action of Messi himself, it's not his fault that he did not have a proper coach and team chemistry like Xavi had in Spain... I remember watching TyC sports journalists praising his performances except the Germany of course but you can't expect Messi to defend, create and score all by himself.

 

[FCBarca]

One of the many reasons why we love the Messi-ah

Grant Wahl, SI.com

After bathing in the cesspool of FIFA politics last week, I'll admit it: I wanted to hear a story that restored some credibility to the great global game of soccer. And wouldn't you know it, I found one, courtesy of Lionel Messi, FC Barcelona, an energetic Baltimore foundation and a 17-year-old high school senior from Suwanee, Ga., named Jordyn Farrell.

In a column back in February, I briefly mentioned the Craig Willinger Fund, a group that started in 2008 when Baltimore soccer fans helped raise money so that Willinger, a Bayern Munich fan with terminal leukemia, could make a dream trip to Germany to watch his team play in person. The non-profit organization -- with Willinger chairing its board of directors -- now raises money to send other cancer-stricken soccer fans to events in the U.S. and abroad.

One of my Atlanta-area readers, Nick Farrell, read the column in February and contacted the Willinger Fund about his daughter, Jordyn. A huge Barcelona and Messi fan and a rec-league player herself, Jordyn was diagnosed with dysgerminoma, a type of ovarian cancer, after the discovery of a tumor in February 2009, and she completed treatment in November '09 after a recurrence of the disease.

The Willinger Fund is just getting started, really: Its first two trip recipients were Willinger (in '08) and former University of Richmond goalkeeper Katy Hudson, a cancer survivor who attended last summer's World Cup and got to spend significant time behind the scenes with the U.S. national team in South Africa. The third winner (after a selection process) was Jordyn, who got an expenses-paid trip to attend Barcelona's 3-1 victory over Villarreal at the Camp Nou on Nov. 13.

"Just being in the stadium was a soccer fanatic's dream," Jordyn said, not realizing that there would be much more than that coming her way. Barcelona's foundation made sure she and her father had VIP seats (12 rows away from the field), and after Barcelona's victory she was taken to the garage where the players park their cars. Jordyn met and/or got autographs from Xavi, Pedro, Javier Mascherano and Eric Abidal.

And then, just as the clock struck 2 a.m., Messi appeared. He had already scored twice on the night, but he wasn't done making an impression on the visiting Americans.

What followed was the result of a long process. The Willinger Fund had contacted Messi's father, Jorge, who runs Messi's foundation in Argentina. Jorge connected the Willinger Fund to Messi's brother, Rodrigo, who was in Barcelona and helped set up Jordyn's meeting with the Barça star.

When they finally met, Messi signed Jordyn's Barcelona jersey and posed for a picture. "It was exhilarating," Jordyn said. "I didn't know until right before I met him that he would actually be there."

"Messi was amazing," said her father, Nick. "He was really genuine about it when he came over. She told me she's never going to wash that jersey again."

The Farrells are framing the signed Barcelona jersey with their ticket stubs from the game and the photograph of Jordyn with Messi. Jordyn, a senior at North Gwinnett High, says she wants to take it with her to college next year, which would make for an awfully cool conversation piece.

"She was diagnosed with cancer twice, and the meaning of soccer to her was so huge throughout this process," her father said. "They're bringing an extra bit of hope for kids as they're going through some really tough times."

Even better, Jordyn has been cancer-free for just over a year. "She has one more big scan right before Christmas, just to see if things are still moving in the right direction," Nick said. "All the indications are good."

If the world's best soccer player played even a small role in that, then so much the better. Good on you, Lionel Messi.

 

[putogusiluz8]

 

[Barcaman]

Messi revealed that showing his hands to the sky (part of celebrations) is dedicating his goals to his late grandmother.

 

[Daemul]

Yeah, I heard that a while back on Revista, shows how much Messi's grandma pushed him foward to become the great footballer he is now.

 

[Pepe Silvia]

The guy is a true champion. La Masia raises some gentlemen.

As for the "reasons" behind Messi's less than stellar WC, if you can't understand how tactics could affect his performances, then I really don't know what else to say. I'm convinced that with Maradona and his goon squad out, Messi will show the same types of performances with NT that he does with Barcelona. After all, he was performing ace before Maradona took over and is again now with Batista in.

 

[Chainsaw]

 

[Elite-BkD]

The guy is a true champion. La Masia raises some gentlemen.

As for the "reasons" behind Messi's less than stellar WC, if you can't understand how tactics could affect his performances, then I really don't know what else to say. I'm convinced that with Maradona and his goon squad out, Messi will show the same types of performances with NT that he does with Barcelona. After all, he was performing ace before Maradona took over and is again now with Batista in.

This. Just ask Spain or Brazil. If anything he looks like he plays better for Argentina, or at least more consistently brilliant.

 

[Bionicman]

As for the "reasons" behind Messi's less than stellar WC, if you can't understand how tactics could affect his performances, then I really don't know what else to say. I'm convinced that with Maradona and his goon squad out, Messi will show the same types of performances with NT that he does with Barcelona. After all, he was performing ace before Maradona took over and is again now with Batista in.

Never said he wouldn't or can't.

 

[Flavia]

Event with 63 kids, from 11 schools from barcelona

 

[Elite-BkD]

Never said he wouldn't or can't.

You do seem to think he should have in the World Cup in order to be considered to have played at his best though.

 

[10Rivaldo]

Hi Mourinho!

 

[gingerless]

Hi Mourinho!

i recall a scene from the movie role models where some kid disses the guy and he goes "yeah well, i f%&*ed your mom"

can imagine mou doing that

 

[DaniAlves]

He looks so much more relaxed and happy surrounded by children that he does with adults.

 

[Ricky10]

He looks so much more relaxed and happy surrounded by children that he does with adults.

Maybe, bcs he´s still child.