Lionel "The Greatest of All Time" Messi

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DonAK

DonAK

President of FC Barcelona
Rassvet said:
No need to be stuck in the past Donny just because we're in the thread of a past it player
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Only one stuck in this thread is you who keep posting here as KL10 just said :lol:

Just look at the post count in here. Says it all doesn't it?

Besides why do you even care so much? You're not a Barcelona fan. You don't like Leo Messi either. Let the Barca fans on this forum hype up, support, criticize Messi how much they want.

Only people I see getting their panties in a bunch are you and your posse whenever someone dares praise or reminisce about the greatest player in our club's history. If that's too much for you I'd recommend this forum: https://www.bayernforum.com/

I can recommend a few other forums too for when you eventually jump to another team :cheers:
 
KingLeo10

KingLeo10

Senior Member
Rory said:
Okay Messi is past it at club level. Does anyone actually disagree with that? You’ve made that point, it’s accepted. Move on
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Absolutely no Messi fan considers 21/22 Messi at the level of prime Messi or even 50% of prime Messi.

The trolls know this...which is why they manufacture a narrative where "no one can see Messi's decline", so they can posit themselves as the "rational minds arguing against delusion".

Rassvet has learnt from his past bans that as long as he doesn't go nuclear like OG did, he can get away with this brand of trolling.
 
T

Temptation

Well-known member
Tactically speaking, if I had to fit current Messi in and use him well, I(being the wannabe manager I am) would:

Play a 4 4 2 mid-block.

I'd play Messi off a CF. Preferably a fast CF who can run in behind(like Haaland or Nunez) or a Tall, Strong Targetman CF who can hold up play(Mandzukic, Dzyuba type).

The 2 solid blocks of 4 behind the 2 up top would maintain a solid enough defensive shape to compensate for Messi's total lack of off the ball work.

Keep Messi as close to the goal as possible. Now I know he has forgotten his shooting boots this season but finishing is one of the few things you shouldn't lose with age or decline. I'd back Messi to get back into scoring form once he gets some confidence back in his stride.

He can obviously drop deep and spray balls around from time to time but I'd ask him to carry to ball lesser(due to the obvious dribbling and acceleration decline) and play more first time balls and move the ball as quickly as possible.

Would permanently strip him off penalty duties and ofcourse he'd be taking all the free kicks and corners.

All in all, I think fitting current Messi in without hindering the overall team play is possible even if a bit intricate and complex. I can see why some top coaches would be reluctant to change their system so much to fit him in.
 
serghei

serghei

Senior Member
EV used aging Messi the best. Unfortunately, Suarez just didn't have the legs to cover for Messi's crap work rate. Since his work rate was kind of shit as well. The answer is indeed a 4-4-1-1, with a 9 that is willing to sacrifice himself for Messi, and 2 physical CMs.
 
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serghei

serghei

Senior Member
Temptation said:
He can obviously drop deep and spray balls around from time to time but I'd ask him to carry to ball lesser(due to the obvious dribbling and acceleration decline) and play more first time balls and move the ball as quickly as possible.
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This is the trap. For him to drop deep in a 4-4-2 to spray balls like a no10, you need midfielders and fullbacks to abandon their defensive positioning and make runs. So whenever the ball is lost in this set-up you have Messi caught in a deep position, and other midfielders caught way too advanced.

Only way you can make it work is for Messi to cover defensively for the players momentarily caught upfield. He'll never do that, which is why he is a shit midfielder period. He'll basically watch as the other team breaks and exploits the holes created, with the players caught in offensive positions never being able to track back in time.

The way is to play like an Atletico Madrid. Solid defensive team, and using Messi to maybe snatch 1-0 wins on a game with few chances to score. A bit like Sabella Argentina. Tough defensive team, using 2-3 great offensive outlets to score the 1-2 goals needed to scrape through.
 
L

Laplacian

Senior Member
I seriously don't get why there's so much hate over Messi...

This fighting should be in a Dembele thread, Jordi Alba's, ter Stegen's, Adama's, Busquets...


This thread should have nothing but awesome nostalgia over Messi's 15 year service for the club. It's actually unfathomable to me that several users make a living out of disparaging this legend's career on a daily basis, somehow pinning the faults of the club on him when he was consistently the best performer in the club.

Literally triggers me whenever I read OGBarca's posts about Messi only having notable accomplishments "10 years ago" when he was literally the best player in the world in 2019, and almost carried us to a UCL final by being the main goal scorer and creator in Europe for us. He was only let down by the mediocrity of ter Stege, Busquets, Rakitic, Alba, Pique, and to a lesser extent Dembele.

Seriously, fuck you for turning this legend's thread into such a mess. Should be a bannable offense if the owners of this forum actually had a thing for this club.
 
M

Morten

Senior Member
serghei said:
EV used aging Messi the best. Unfortunately, Suarez just didn't have the legs to cover for Messi's crap work rate. Since his work rate was kind of shit as well. The answer is indeed a 4-4-1-1, with a 9 that is willing to sacrifice himself for Messi, and 2 physical CMs.
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Tru, never performed at the same level again after EV got removed.
 
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