10 - Lionel Messi - v3

[khaled_a_d]

How many of the people saying Messi didn't deserve the golden ball watched at least half of the world cup matches? I watched at least three matches of each player nominated and the only player who had a case was James and he got knocked out too early. I'll analyze more later tonight in a more detailed post.

I've watched the 64 games whether live or downloaded ,Robben is clear cut no. 1 IMO ,after him for me It was Messi,Muller,Lahm,Masherano James all did gr8 but non affected the game just like Messi ,Mou is right (even though that sentence doesn't sound right ) Messi sacrificed his status for the team and that really made him underrated throughout the tournament
He is a legend nevertheless anyway ,he would be considered the greatest not to win a WC most probably even better than Cruijff

 

[Heavy]

Maradona wasn't even the best player when he was at Boca and even Riquelme is a better player recognized by their fans.

 

[Paganinisrvnge]

I've watched the 64 games whether live or downloaded ,Robben is clear cut no. 1 IMO ,after him for me It was Messi,Muller,Lahm,Masherano James all did gr8 but non affected the game just like Messi ,Mou is right (even though that sentence doesn't sound right ) Messi sacrificed his status for the team and that really made him underrated throughout the tournament
He is a legend nevertheless anyway ,he would be considered the greatest not to win a WC most probably even better than Cruijff

I didn't think Robben was as impressive in the knockouts as people made him out to be. He didn't score(same criticism of Messi) and he spent most of his time diving.

 

[Adversus]

Don't forget that the pitches are far better today than the 80s too.

It's very difficult to judge players from different eras but what you can do is judge them against their peers.

Maradona for me stood out from his era more than any other player.

 

[Mitchell1978]

Don't forget that the pitches are far better today than the 80s too.

It's very difficult to judge players from different eras but what you can do is judge them against their peers.

Maradona for me stood out from his era more than any other player.

i started watching football in 1990 so can't say i really followed the 80s but from the footage i saw the game was much slower and there was much more space for attacking players

 

[CatalinR10]

 

[guyofcricket]

Jose Mourinho quotes for Eurosport

“When Sabella brought Aguero on for Lavezzi, Argentina changed from a 4-4-2 to a 4-3-3 and they lost a lot of balance. Messi had to run much more after Lavezzi went off.”

“It's easy to respect him when he has won but when he has lost, it's not so easy,” added the Chelsea boss.

“'He is still a historical player. He does not need to be world champion to be a historical player, especially in this last decade.”

 

[Jadentheman]

most Brazilians still do, for me i never considered Maradonna greater then Pele

Most Brazilians consider Garrincha as the #1 GOAT compared to Pele. Pele is just the 2nd best and only alive today. But I bet if you ask the old Brazilians about who was goat at that time it was Garrincha. Now if you consider Messi better than Garrincha....

 

[DonAndres]

I never saw Pele but those that did like my dad still think he was the greatest and you can't argue with his record.

As for different eras, today it's easier for attacking players to play as they are protected far more.

Pele's record is vastly inflated and I'd say football of his time was too much in its infancy to take seriously. Half of his 1280 goal tally was accumulated in friendlies less competitive than highschool football games, and a vast majority of his 'official' goals (roughly 585/643) were in local state competitions which are complete crap even to this day let alone back then. His record in the Brazilian Serie A was a measly 34 goals in 84 appearances (and that competition was still VERY new and not 1/20 as competitive as any of the top leagues today).

Tactics back then were as basic as they get and allowed for completely open games with formations ranging between 2-3-5 to 4-2-4 with little to no emphasis on defense or playing as a unit. Goalkeepers were known often to not even use gloves and defenders were pretty much turd all around when looking at available footage. I know that it's complicated to compare between generations but then why the hell even hold that generation with any regard compared to today? Pele simply is not the best football player of all time.

Maradona for me stood out from his era more than any other player.

Maradona's era can be held with a lot more regard than Pele's was, Serie A in the 80's was a hugely competitive league. The defenders were great and the top teams were almost equally strong. The thing I'd observe is that games look much more tactically open in those times. Back lines were strong but you didn't have suffocating defensive systems like parking the bus with 10 men behind the ball or collective high pressure until Sacchi's AC Milan side which was tactically light years ahead of most other teams. It was difficult to win, but games were more open and attackers had the kind of space between the lines that allowed them to fully play to their abilities.

 

[Heavy]

Pele's record is vastly inflated and I'd say football of his time was too much in its infancy to take seriously. Half of his 1280 goal tally was accumulated in friendlies less competitive than highschool football games, and a vast majority of his 'official' goals (roughly 585/643) were in local state competitions which are complete crap even to this day let alone back then. His record in the Brazilian Serie A was a measly 34 goals in 84 appearances (and that competition was still VERY new and not 1/20 as competitive as any of the top leagues

Lol, there wasn't a serie a in his first ten years as a pro, the national championship wasn't unified, he was top scorer multiple times, the biggest teams played against Santos in his championship. This 34 in 84 was when he was older.

Fun fact: he was in the goal 3 times and no one ever scored against him, kkk

 

[NotInHere]

Like some other guy here said, maybe he just should take a year off kinda like Michael Jordan did.

 

[dakt]

Year off? Are you guys serious? It's like you take 10 years off in whatever you do for living.

 

[Stric]

He could definitely use some more time off to rest and heal and sort whatever issues he might be having. Other than that, his current level is still pretty much mind boggling. I read a great statement somewhere, if it was any other player that put up a performance like Messi's at this WC, people would be screaming for him to win the Golden Ball. With Messi, it's double standards.

 

[klc123]

Like some other guy here said, maybe he just should take a year off kinda like Michael Jordan did.

What???

IMO there is one thing wrong with Messi.
He had a bad injury this year, and he was rushed back early because his team needed him, he hasn't had the time to fully recover. Even if the injury is gone, his fitness and sharpness will be gone from missing so much training over that period. Give him the time he needs over this summer to recuperate and get back to his best for the next year. Hopefully Neymar won't be so useless next year and Suarez will ease the burden when he starts playing.

He could definitely use some more time off to rest and heal and sort whatever issues he might be having. Other than that, his current level is still pretty much mind boggling. I read a great statement somewhere, if it was any other player that put up a performance like Messi's at this WC, people would be screaming for him to win the Golden Ball. With Messi, it's double standards.

Kudos, Kudos.

Everyone is saying Messi didn't deserve the Golden Ball because he was not the best Messi we have seen over the last 5 years, or anything close to that form.
The problem is that he set such astronomically high standards over the last few years, that in a year where he has been injured mid-season and rushed back, he was never going to have any chance to perform like he usually does.

I can't wait to see him come back restored, fresh and hungry in september to tear teams apart with the new and improved team/manager.

 

[NotInHere]

Well maybe not a year off but take enough time to solve whatever issue he has obviously.