FinBarcelonafan
Well-known member
The highest xG in the league by far but only two goals. Small sample size. He had looked slow and weak though.
9 - Robert Lewandowski
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DonAK
President of FC Barcelona
This is why it's always funny to see people rave about how well a player looks physically and how that's supposed to help them play late into their 30s.
Not the way it works. You can have a six pack and look like Zeus, but it doesn't matter if you move like a fucking cargo truck and the ball bounces off you.
Not the way it works. You can have a six pack and look like Zeus, but it doesn't matter if you move like a fucking cargo truck and the ball bounces off you.
Iniesta Ultra
Senior Member
what's his xG?
ajnotkeith
Senior Member
Because people are looking at it from the wrong angle.
Lewandowski is ripped but not strong. There's a difference.
His frame is kind of frail and thin and he has low body fat. Whilst its good for pumped pictures with nice lighting, he isn't that big in general and probably doesn't transmit much force through his body.
Then you have a guy like Rooney for example who looks like a fat ass but has a really bulky lower back, shoulders and midsection and a compact frame so when he collides or boxes out opponents his body takes more power to shift.
Basically Lewandowski has a nice fitness influencer physique (thin waist, low body fat, symmetry, good muscle insertions) but not a good functional strength physique for football. The test for me is usually do they look heavy or bulky with a shirt on? Think Rooney, Rodri, Michail Antonio, Aaron Wan-Bissaka etc.
Lewa looks like he's conditioned in a shirt but not physically over bearing. Just fit.
I remember in UCL final vs Utd 2009, Messi dribbled from half way line then Carrick, Rooney and Vidic pressed and pushed him, he still kept the ball and didn't lose balance at all.
Or like this goal. Lewa (and most players) would likely fall down
Rooney was a force of natural in his prime.
iniestaGOAT
Senior Member
He never had the makings of a varsity athlete
Strength ≠ balance. Would say strength is more useful in defence while balance is more useful in attack. Lewy lacks balance compared to Messi, so does Cristiano. Of course Messi's low point of gravity helps him immensely. Remember a Pep documentary in 2009 (Paraula de Pep I think it was) where he said Messi is built like an animal and tougher than many think.
ajnotkeith
Senior Member
Messi isn't a small guy. He's pretty defined and thick for a guy of his weight.
The HGH injections 100 percent contributed to that (not hating!!!) It likely strengthened his joints vastly in his development phase.
The HGH injections 100 percent contributed to that (not hating!!!) It likely strengthened his joints vastly in his development phase.
Fati_Future_BallonDor
Well-known member
Yeah HGH in puberty age will definitely lead to better joints.
Fati_Future_BallonDor
Well-known member
Messi is 1.70m which is a normal size in south america, don't know why media always call him small
El Gato
Villarato!
What's that bodybuilding quote again?
"If you have a six pack it means you're not eating enough"?
Obviously applies narrowly, but funny here
Would be interested to see if Lewa actually benefitted from bulking up late into his career. It'd sacrifice some of his ability to cover ground, but might help him be a menace in the box
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ajnotkeith
Senior Member
As a natural athlete you basically have two choices - ripped and thin or big and bulky.
Being ripped and having a ton of muscle mass is off the table unless you have insane genetics/are cheating drug testing.
Especially for football which has so much cardio already involved.
Like you said it might be better for him to actually put on some pounds and gain a little fat. He will get stronger and probably not lose much else because he is slow already.
El Gato
Villarato!
Yeah
Instead dude acts like he's 175cm and playing CM where you need conditioning to be competitive for 55 games a year in this kind of team.
Needs to own his age and get into his head he's at the moment not successful at Barca at all
There was a snippet in that interview somewhere where he got asked if he feels like he's slowing down and he just ended up answering with a question "do you remember a season where I scored 22 goals" trying to make a point that happened when he was at his peak and he's now validated for scoring 23
Instead dude acts like he's 175cm and playing CM where you need conditioning to be competitive for 55 games a year in this kind of team.
Needs to own his age and get into his head he's at the moment not successful at Barca at all
There was a snippet in that interview somewhere where he got asked if he feels like he's slowing down and he just ended up answering with a question "do you remember a season where I scored 22 goals" trying to make a point that happened when he was at his peak and he's now validated for scoring 23
BusiTheKing
Senior Member
Being strong in football is much less about muscle mass than people realize. It's about being able to access your muscles at specific angles and in specific combinations intuitively. It's about proprioception and fascial tension.
Look how Messi here: https://streamable.com/pvly6v
How he absorbs the blow of Khedira through his whole body, basically remaining in complete composure while being shifted mid air. Then shrugging off Pepe with a change of direction. You can be as ripped or as bulky as possible, without this innate physical talent your body would still naturally give in at the point of impact.
Look how Messi here: https://streamable.com/pvly6v
How he absorbs the blow of Khedira through his whole body, basically remaining in complete composure while being shifted mid air. Then shrugging off Pepe with a change of direction. You can be as ripped or as bulky as possible, without this innate physical talent your body would still naturally give in at the point of impact.
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