Lionel Messi - v7

[KingLeo10]

Most would choose neither. I'd rather go with likes of Salah, Mane, Gnabry etc. Fast skilled players who are still hungry to win.

This is the right answer. CR7 and Juve have been going nowhere in the CL either. 7 of CR7's last 8 CL KO goals have been headers or pens, which he is still the best ever at. But in terms of being a terror on offense? Meh compared to his prime at RM.

The metric is CL success.

Just look at how Sane or Salah or Mane fold players on the attack lol.

 

[Morten]

This is the right answer. CR7 and Juve have been going nowhere in the CL either. 7 of CR7's last 8 CL KO goals have been headers, which he is still the best ever at. But in terms of being a terror on offense? Meh compared to his prime at RM.

The metric is CL success.

Just look at how Sane or Salah or Mane fold players on the attack lol.

Then again, many people here also thought Vidal was key in tough CL games, due to "mentality" and "fighting spirit"(i would call his type of spirit as being retarded, oh well), despite having a grand total of zero CL trophies in his career.

Those qualities are overrated, you need a complete team first and foremost, you cannot do it alone(as Messi in 18/19 found out, or as Ronaldo found out in Juve, despite doing his very best in the knockouts).

 

[Toecrusher]

Should play CF/False 9. Playing him at AM means we look for him too much, he drops too deep, and we lose at lot in the defensive transition/offensive pressing.

 

[te amo barca]

Should play CF/False 9. Playing him at AM means we look for him too much, he drops too deep, and we lose at lot in the defensive transition/offensive pressing.

Yeah it's ridiculous when he's the deepest player together with Busi and we have all those players who are worse at finishing than Messi is being in advanced positions. Messi tries to play 1-2s and loses the ball: most of our players are upfront because they pushed higher to make themselves available, Messi does not press or defend immediately after losing the ball and it is a dangerous counter every time.

 

[snowy]

This is the right answer. CR7 and Juve have been going nowhere in the CL either. 7 of CR7's last 8 CL KO goals have been headers or pens, which he is still the best ever at. But in terms of being a terror on offense? Meh compared to his prime at RM.

The metric is CL success.

Just look at how Sane or Salah or Mane fold players on the attack lol.

Not valid for last year though. 10% Messi was folding players in 1v1, 1v3's 4s 5s way better than Sane, Salah or Mane last season. That is... in dribbling, take-ons and ground duels.

This year, we've got 2% behind bars Messi

That's on us for not letting him go. Could've saved 100 mil in salary + the 65 mil 5th year bonus. Well done Barto

 

[Ritchie]

messi should seriously considering the idea of retiring from football before becoming a parody of a player he was. he's 33 but looks like a 40yold, his clutchness in this kind of match is fucking done, I still can't believe he missed that sitter lmao

He should go to Serie A. Plenty of players pushing 40 are banging goals in over there. It's a much slower league. Either that or go to PSG.

Glad he didn't go to City because he'd have ruined his reputation even more, by not being able to physically cope with the Premier League given his physical decline.

 

[MagIX]

Then again, many people here also thought Vidal was key in tough CL games, due to "mentality" and "fighting spirit"(i would call his type of spirit as being retarded, oh well), despite having a grand total of zero CL trophies in his career.

Those qualities are overrated, you need a complete team first and foremost, you cannot do it alone(as Messi in 18/19 found out, or as Ronaldo found out in Juve, despite doing his very best in the knockouts).

Well said, i totally agree

 

[Fati_Future_BallonDor]

Then again, many people here also thought Vidal was key in tough CL games, due to "mentality" and "fighting spirit"(i would call his type of spirit as being retarded, oh well), despite having a grand total of zero CL trophies in his career.

Those qualities are overrated, you need a complete team first and foremost, you cannot do it alone(as Messi in 18/19 found out, or as Ronaldo found out in Juve, despite doing his very best in the knockouts).

Thats it!

 

[soul24rage]

Then again, many people here also thought Vidal was key in tough CL games, due to "mentality" and "fighting spirit"(i would call his type of spirit as being retarded, oh well), despite having a grand total of zero CL trophies in his career.

Those qualities are overrated, you need a complete team first and foremost, you cannot do it alone(as Messi in 18/19 found out, or as Ronaldo found out in Juve, despite doing his very best in the knockouts).

great post

 

[Altomonte]

Messi played well in the first half. Too bad he could not finish his 1v1 with his right foot maybe should have tried again to nutmeg Courtois. Bar?a had a good period just before the Ramos penalty show, and near the end Ramos was very lucky to get away with a funny backfoot tackle that stopped Messi. Ramos deserves to be MoM for those two actions.
What surprised me was Lucas' performance, RM should make him right back!
The third goal is on FDJ - not the first time he loses the ball and causes a goal.
Great performance by Dest, he should be our #1 right back from now on.

 

[eaman]

Ridiculous people saying he had no motivation. Him dispossessing vinicius in the first half along with a few other track backs proves he had. He played his normal game except it's with an average team. He barely put a foot wrong on the ball today and looked up for it. Him giving out for players not passing to him and getting a yellow for descent proved that. Saying all that he does not want to be at barca but is showing more fight than other players worldwide that have handed in transfer requests to their clubs but have been denied a transfer

 

[serghei]

Then again, many people here also thought Vidal was key in tough CL games, due to "mentality" and "fighting spirit"(i would call his type of spirit as being retarded, oh well), despite having a grand total of zero CL trophies in his career.

Those qualities are overrated, you need a complete team first and foremost, you cannot do it alone(as Messi in 18/19 found out, or as Ronaldo found out in Juve, despite doing his very best in the knockouts).

Nobody thought he is going to be KEY at his age. But guess what, he was actually one of the better players in that infamous Anfield game, and the only one that operated at the same intensity with the Liverpool counterparts. A level above Busi, and "flop of the match" Rakitic who shat himself whenever he faced even a tiny bit of pressure. Prime Vidal though... would've been quite a weapon in CL, yes.

Those qualities aren't overrated. We're not talking about bums that have fighting spirit but can't make a straight pass. We're talking about class players that have that component on top of many other qualities. That's what you need, and that's what you're up against against team like Liverpool and Bayern.

 

[Morten]

Nobody thought he is going to be KEY at his age. But guess what, he was actually one of the better players in that Anfield game, and the only one that operated at the same intensity with the Liverpool counterparts.

Well, in this age of attributing CL-wins(or losses) to individual players, he hardly made a big name for himself in the past either, did he?
Arturo Vidal, grand total of zero CL wins in his career.

Of course, he`ll always have those wins with Chile to fall back on though, arguably bigger, but still.

 

[Raketa10]

No doubt at all to anyone watching him that he has declined alot in the past years, specially lately, his level is much lower this year.

But its not due to age, 33 is not old at all in this day and age with our knowledge of medicine and sport and physical training and recovery, look at Federer how good he is playing at almost 40 years old, look at Lebon James at almost 36, look at other athletes, the age of decline has gone up alot or at least the career has been postponed at playing at a high level.

Messi's problem is not age, its his life and his workrate, thats his problem, look at Ronaldinho, he was a magicial and a one of a kind player, but for how long? His decline was extremely fast, in his peak young days, why did he decline? Because he was partying alot, he did not train alot or did the phyiscal work required.

Its the same with Messi, ive noticed it a while ago and im sure many of you have that Messi does not have the workrate and dedication and work ethic of some other athletes such as lebron james or even cristiano ronaldo.

The older you get the more important it is to give your 100% off court, off court work, in the gym, physical, recovery work, diet.. everything... Messi is not that kind of guy, ive noticed that ever since he got his son and then later more, he was not 100% commited to soccer anymore, he was still brilliant for a while but that spark left him I noticed and I was afraid he would decline much sooner and shaper, but he still maintained a pretty good level alltho it was not the same anymore as it was before his family life.

But now as he gets older and older it becomes more and more obvious and clear, its too bad Messi does not have the same work ethic as some other athletes that I mentioned, if he did he could be at the top of soccer into his late 30s.... he doesn't even rely on physical assets NEARLY as much as someone like Cristiano Ronaldo, and most people said that CR would decline much faster because of it... but sadly they forgot to take into account that CR has the work ethic of a robot, in everything, he puts 100% off court and does everything he can and is the first guy on the training pitch and last guy to leave... thats the kind of dedication Messi would need and he could be at the top of the game into his late 30s, but he is not that guy im sad to say, its a big weakness of his and due to this his legacy in the end will be far shorter and far worse than it could have been.

Messi won 6 Ballon d'Or awards and was on top of the world for more than a decade and he doesn't have a work ethic. The stupidity in this forum is unbelievable. Has ever crossed your mind that body and muscle structure of Messi is much different than the muscle structure of Ronaldo or Lebron? Regarding Federer, he started declining even before Messi. Unbelievable post!

 

[serghei]

Well, in this age of attributing CL-wins(or losses) to individual players, he hardly made a big name for himself in the past either, did he?
Arturo Vidal, grand total of zero CL wins in his career.

Of course, he`ll always have those wins with Chile to fall back on though, arguably bigger, but still.

Yea, like Il Fenomeno among others (I trust you won't think I'm comparing Vidal with Ronaldo). It matters who you play for. In all his career he played for underdogs mostly, at least at CL level. The one time he played for a big favorite, they got unlucky in that match vs Atletico in 2016.

Don't know what we're arguing really. Vidal was good enough to have won even more than one CL, but you play the cards that you are given sometimes. Navas has 3 CLs, Buffon has 0. And so on. Multiple examples.