10 - Lionel Messi - v5

[putogusiluz8]

Mascherano was practically playing for Nigeria tonight. Disastrous on the ball and flying loose with dumb tackles and fouls on the other end, constantly getting caught out of position as well. Don't think a guy with 0 composure deserves to be captain.

Don't give a flying fuck about his "heart" when he's managed to be the most negatively impactful player on Argentina in this tournament. Especially against Croatia and Iceland, he was a huge negative going forward and singlehandedly fucked up Argentina's buildup play.

God he was abysmal. He put in some good tackles and fought hard but he gave the ball away that could have been the fuck up that gave Nigeria the goal and destroyed Argentina's confidence yet again. And he got smoked on the wings by Musa I believe it was several times as well.

 

[Pepe Silvia]

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This was a career defining moment.

 

[Richard.H]

How do you know if he has leadership personality or not, you've never met him.

He doesn't and I don't need to meet him to see what type of personality traits he has. I know by watching him play for more than a decade, he doesn't possess that type of personality.

His body language, his lack of communication with his teammates, his demeanor, have never screamed "leader " to me as a fan and viewer.

This in no means takes away from his footballing ability

 

[bodi16]

It was Thuram who was their best player . Croatua was a litmus test for them and he dragged them out of mess . Paraguay too gave them a torrid time before Blanc scored golden goal . Zidane in wc 2006 >Zidane in wc 98

Yeah, i also remember Zidane didn't even play against Paraguay because of a red card in the 2nd GS round.

 

[Kul_z]

The least risky one without tweaking the current lineup against Nigeria, would be to replace Di Maria with Dybala.

And Bring in Di maria late on when everyone is on tired legs. His pace & trickery will be best utilized then.

Exactly. Dybala is like a get out of the jail free card. Relive pressure from messi, link up play guaranteed, danger from distance, and higuain lurking inside penalty box. If the undispited goat(no question, ffs whole team in whatever match is organised in the manner how to stop our talisman) gets the ball inside the final third without the pressure from the whole line but from one or two players, it means fire. Messi is cursed because he is so good that in the last 10 years every manager that has played against his team always adapted their tactics on how to neutralize messi and thats the key. Bring false messi to give real messi just one second more to decide what to do with the ball.

 

[Pepe Silvia]

I've no idea why he runs so little while it's clear his game would improve so much if he moves when not in possession.

He physically can't. It's pretty obvious I think. I'm sure in games like today he pushes himself, but to prolong his career he paces himself WAY more than the average pro.

 

[RMU ReBorn]

Yeah, i also remember Zidane didn't even play against Paraguay because of a red card in the 2nd GS round.

wasn't that a straight red ? . Did he played against Italy ? . I don't remember

 

[Horatio]

lol some of you guys are truly something else. he has put up poor performances in KO games in recent years but the amount of times he has come up big for barca/argentina in CL finals, clasicos, and crucial liga/qualifying games definitely outweighs the number of subpar/poor performances.

I addressed it before but Messi suffers in multiple ways from not playing alongside other players that can overturn the match. So if Messi doesn't do it and the team loses all blame is put on him.

But I believe with Coutinho we now have another player that can have a huge impact in important fixtures.

 

[George_Costanza]

But I believe with Coutinho we now have another player that can have a huge impact in important fixtures.

I hope so but I doubt EV will get the best of him like Klopp and Tite.

 

[FCBfan22]

I addressed it before but Messi suffers in multiple ways from not playing alongside other players that can overturn the match. So if Messi doesn't do it and the team loses all blame is put on him.

But I believe with Coutinho we now have another player that can have a huge impact in important fixtures.

Yes we have. It's encouraging that Dembouz and Cou created quite a few goals without Messi/Iniesta's involment at the end of the season.

 

[RMU ReBorn]

 

[Horatio]

Yes we have. It's encouraging that Dembouz and Cou created quite a few goals without Messi/Iniesta's involment at the end of the season.

I am talking about big games. But yes, I do think Dembele will turn into a player we will rely on a lot as well.

 

[JamDav1982]

I am talking about big games. But yes, I do think Dembele will turn into a player we will rely on a lot as well.

Barca have always had that with Messi.

Before this season there was Suarez and Neymar.

Previous to that there was Xavi, Iniesta, Villa etc.

 

[RMU ReBorn]

likes of Dembele , Mbape vs Masche and Argie defenders will be a laugh riot . Messi won't even get a sniff to shoot with kante running behind him for 90 minutes .

 

[Horatio]

Barca have always had that with Messi.

Before this season there was Suarez and Neymar.

Previous to that there was Xavi, Iniesta, Villa etc.

The concept of 'messidepencia' didn't just fall out of thin air.