10 - Lionel Messi - v5

[Neymessi]

They were for first half and looked a good system but after Di Maria went off was too easy for Venenzuala to defend deep and narrow.

Some of their player choices seem crazy though.

Yeah. What I seem to see everywhere is everyone is calling this one of the match where messi played great but his team let him down. He wasn't great in this match and his teammates weren't that bad either. There were tons of chances created in the 90 min by argentina and were just unlucky not to win.

There are plenty of matches where messi is great alone and carries argentina while others being shit but this wasn't one of those games.

 

[Ritchie]

Messi's decision to come back is going south real quick. If Argentina don't qualify now, he will be vilified even more than he already has, and if anything, his team has gotten even worse than they were before.

At least if Argentina failed to qualify without him, it would serve as a big 'Fuck You' to all the ungrateful Argentinians blaming him for everything, when he's been a 1-man team for god knows how long now.

If he stayed retired they 100% wouldn't qualify and he'd get the blame for that too and would be vilified in Argentina. He can't win, unless he wins games on his own.

 

[henias]

People NEVER seem to understand that possession football needs very good tactics and teammates that can transition very quickly. While some may think Messi did little to contribute to the game, there are still very glaring underlying issues to Sampaoli's tactics. Although Argentina may seem like a "stacked team", they are hardly very well accustomed to the fundamentals of tiki taka. The likes of Icardi, Higuain, Benega seemed very slow on the ball, no dynamism whatsoever. They lack good attacking fullbacks as well. Argentina is no Barcelona. The only good teams that play with very strong chemistry and understanding with each other are Spain, Germany, Brazil. A good example would be France, one of the most talented squads but hardly any mutual connection or strong tactics. Call me crazy, but I dont see France getting anywhere near the semis or finals of the World Cup.

Tactics wise, if u dont have the players that seem comfortable with possession, tiki taka. SIMPLY DON'T. If u dont have players like Xavi or Iniesta, U SIMPLY CANT tiki taka ur way out. Messi alone cant do it all. I have seen the exact same thing with Sampaoli's Sevilla; they even struggled and lost to a counter attacking Leiceister. With possession football, even teams like Venezuela could comfortably sit back all game because they have nothing to lose. If Sampaoli didnt make possession a priority and get rid of the high pressing to save energy, it would allow some breathing space for Argentina and would likely bait some Venezuela attackers to go forward. It could then create more space for Argentina to penetrate, ultimately springing a surprise attack on them while they are vulnerable.

This is the problem with teams that adopt an extreme tiki taka mindset and have no flexibility, believing its a one size fits all. Teams like Chile, Arsenal, Sevilla suffer the exact same problem. Real Madrid are good example of a team with very good adaptability and flexibility, who could ultimately play both tiki taka and counter attacking. Look at how the likes of Real Madrid's Isco, Asensio, and Ramos injecting almost an entirely NEW life into the Spain NT. It's about adaptibility. The new generation of Spain isn't about just tiki taka, but equally dangerous at counter attacking as well.

 

[Ritchie]

Full backs do impede Argentina a lot, a bit like with Belgium in recent tournaments. There's nobody to overlap and Messi just gets crowded out the game. Alves was always vital for Messi.

As for Argentina's midfield, it's no better than Barcelona's. Pure mediocre. For club and country all Messi really had was Neymar and now he's gone too (Dembele time will tell). I bet he'd love the likes of Mbappe, Isco, Asensio., Verratti, David Silva, De Bruyne, Jesus etc.

 

[Rick 44]

I have am a new user here and contrary to some people's opinions messi played fine. He is the only argentine that looks like the create any thing and when he tries to play a one-two his teammates just lose the ball or pass backwards.

 

[Altomonte]

despite all the negativity there were some good signs for Argentina and Sampaoli. With a little luck and a less inspired Venezuela GK they should have been up 2-3 goals at halftime. Di Maria's injury was a bad break because he was very effective on the left wing.
After the equalizer Sampaoli made bad substitutions, just when Messi and Dybala started to click. I'd like to hear the reason why he subbed off Dybala!
Anyway, Messi did not start his long trip home in good spirits and I hope he will recover quickly enough for the Espanyol game.

 

[Mitchell1978]

The best player for Argentina was Di Maria in his 20 mins on the park.

What a load of nonsense.
By no means did he play that great of a match but Messi was by far Agentina's best player in both games. Went past plenty of people, had a good shot saved by the goal keeper and was constantly setting people up or getting people the ball so they could do something with it. Unfortunately everything was wasted.

 

[Mitchell1978]

What put me of Messi the most was that season where he didn't like the manager and spent 1/2 the game sulking around the 1/2 way line (because he was made to play on the wing).

Was exactly one game that this happened (CL game against Atletico) not half the season.

 

[Mitchell1978]

I have am a new user here and contrary to some people's opinions messi played fine. He is the only argentine that looks like the create any thing and when he tries to play a one-two his teammates just lose the ball or pass backwards.

The only other player who seems capable of playing a one two or on the same wavelength then Messi is Dybala.
So Messi has only 2 options with Argentina, take several people on dribbling and hope something can happen like that or set player through on goal and hope they score.

 

[JamDav1982]

What a load of nonsense.
By no means did he play that great of a match but Messi was by far Agentina's best player in both games. Went past plenty of people, had a good shot saved by the goal keeper and was constantly setting people up or getting people the ball so they could do something with it. Unfortunately everything was wasted.

No he wasnt Di Maria created more dangerous opportunities in that 25 mins than anyone else the whole game.

Messi was decent enough for first half then basically stopped moving last half hour and didnt move enough to get on ball but still looked good when got on it.

Overall Messi and didnt impact game enough against a poor Venezuala.

 

[Luftstalag14]

I have am a new user here and contrary to some people's opinions messi played fine. He is the only argentine that looks like the create any thing and when he tries to play a one-two his teammates just lose the ball or pass backwards.

This is where I think Messi might have a bit of a problem scoring with us this season as well. To me there seems to be two ways for him to penetrate defense and score from open play right now: Either by dribbling past opposing players or relying on playing 1-2's and my impression has been he is relying more and more on the latter these days as he gets older, not that he can't dribble past players any more, of course he can. This is a big part of Messi's game play nowadays. Neymar was the one who was on the same wave length the most with Messi, and before that it was Dani Alves, I think the other players are simply not on the same wave length yet to do that kind of 1-2's that Messi wants. The same can be said of the Argentina NT. What I am thinking is if Messi continues to rely on playing 1-2's it will be a lot less effective and fruitful unless the other players are up to speed.

 

[El Flaco]

Leo Messi chances created + dribbles vs Venezuela

https://streamable.com/6mwk3

 

[Windhook]

The only thing I'm happy about this highlight is Messi being in great shape.

 

[Barcaman]

The only thing I'm happy about this highlight is Messi being in great shape.

In last decade was there really a longer period when he was out of shape?

Legend.

 

[henias]

This is where I think Messi might have a bit of a problem scoring with us this season as well. To me there seems to be two ways for him to penetrate defense and score from open play right now: Either by dribbling past opposing players or relying on playing 1-2's and my impression has been he is relying more and more on the latter these days as he gets older, not that he can't dribble past players any more, of course he can. This is a big part of Messi's game play nowadays. Neymar was the one who was on the same wave length the most with Messi, and before that it was Dani Alves, I think the other players are simply not on the same wave length yet to do that kind of 1-2's that Messi wants. The same can be said of the Argentina NT. What I am thinking is if Messi continues to rely on playing 1-2's it will be a lot less effective and fruitful unless the other players are up to speed.

Messi's game always has been a heavy mix of both. Sure he cant really do solo goals anymore, but his dribbling is still good. And 1-2's are the most straightforward and direct way of attacking in the realm of tiki taka. So unless u expect him to score solo goals with Argentina every match, or expect Argentina have creative midfielders, it looks like he has no choice but to do 1-2s. It will be less effective of course In fact, EVERYTHING related to passing is less effective since Argentina is not Barcelona or Spain. So tell me what else can Messi do unless they change their entire playstyle?

Not tat he desperately want the ball back, but Argentina cant even not lose the ball within few seconds if their lives depended on it. People like Di Maria would just throw away chances so he might as well just get the end of the 1-2 and tries a shot. It may also seems like alot 1-2s but they actually just pass it back to him bcos they have no clue who to pass to.