", "Lionel Messi y el ttulo de Argentina en la Copa Amrica 2021: "Necesitaba sacarme la espina", "Valdano: 'Messi Es Maradona Todos Los Das', "Menotti: 'Messi Est al Nivel del Mejor Maradona Que Vi', "Lionel Messi Is Not the New Maradona He Can Be Better than That", "Tim Vickery: Lionel Messi can now be recognised alongside Diego Maradona by Argentinians", "Lionel Messi Vomits Because of Nerves, Says Argentina's Alejandro Sabella", "Diego Maradona: Lionel Messi lacks the leadership needed to carry a team", "Maradona vs. Messi: A Laughable Comparison", "Lionel Messi: Is Barcelona forward really cut out for captaincy? The Celta players never complained and their coach defended the penalty, stating, "Barca's forwards are very respectful." I stood up tall, I put my chest out. Don't be fooled: it's utterly ridiculous. [468] On 3 July, Messi assisted twice and scored from a free-kick in a 30 win over Ecuador in the quarter-finals of the competition. [401] Following a 10 win against defending champions Uruguay, Messi earned his 100th cap for his country in the final group match, a 10 win over Jamaica, becoming only the fifth Argentine to achieve this milestone. Using our unique search, comparison and ranking tools, FC . Another talented football player in the list of top 10 football player list is Kevin. [377] Overall, Messi scored four goals in 18 appearances during the qualifying process. This was his 34th hat-trick in La Liga, equalling Cristiano Ronaldo's Spanish top-flight record. He is considered one of the greatest players of all time and S.L. For this achievement, Messi received a record seventh Ballon d'Or in 2021. 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Messi's absence from the national team and his continued failure to win a title with Argentina prompted speculation in the media that Messi might retire from international football once again. [298][299] On 29 November, Messi scored his side's fourth goal in their 40 victory over Osasuna. MORE: Who has scored the most goals in international football all-time? [302], On 23 December, Messi scored his 644th goal for Barcelona against Real Valladolid in La Liga, surpassing Pel with Santos as the player with the most goals scored for a single club. Who has scored the most goals in international football all-time. In 2022 he helped Argentina win the Fdration Internationale de Football Association (FIFA)'s World Cup. [17][70][71] His efforts in 2007 also earned him award recognition; journalists voted him the third-best player of the year for the 2007 Ballon d'Or, behind Kak and runner-up Cristiano Ronaldo, while international managers and national team captains voted him second for the FIFA World Player of the Year award, again behind Kak. CNN Sans & 2016 Cable News Network. [394], Billed as Messi versus Germany, the world's best player against the best team, the final was a repeat of the 1990 final featuring Diego Maradona. Ahead of the final, he was awarded the Golden Ball as the best player of the tournament. After scoring, he unveiled a shirt of his former side Newell's Old Boys, in tribute to Argentine compatriot Diego Maradona, who had died four days earlier, and raised both hands to the screen showing Maradona's face in the stadium. On 7 March, two weeks after scoring four goals in a league fixture against Valencia, he scored five times in a Champions League last 16-round match against Bayer Leverkusen, an unprecedented achievement in the history of the competition. [297] On 25 November, Messi was nominated for the 2020 Best FIFA Men's Player award, and was later shortlisted as one of the final three candidates. The management of the club led by Bartomeu is a disaster. [266] On 23 October, Messi scored his first Champions League goal of the season in a 21 away win over Slavia Prague, becoming the first player to score in 15 consecutive Champions League seasons (excluding qualifying rounds). [612] Through his foundation, Messi has awarded research grants, financed medical training, and invested in the development of medical centres and projects in Argentina, Spain, and elsewhere in the world. [46], On 24 June, his 18th birthday, Messi signed his first contract as a senior team player. [84] He returned as a false nine during the final on 27 May in Rome against Manchester United. [505][506][507] Moreover, he is an accurate free kick and penalty kick taker. After his senior debut in August 2005, Messi became the youngest Argentine to play and score in a FIFA World Cup (2006), and reached the final of the 2007 Copa Amrica, where he was named young player of the tournament. Legendary footballers are easy to name. [157][556] Beyond their playing styles, the debate also revolves around their differing physiques Ronaldo is .mw-parser-output .frac{white-space:nowrap}.mw-parser-output .frac .num,.mw-parser-output .frac .den{font-size:80%;line-height:0;vertical-align:super}.mw-parser-output .frac .den{vertical-align:sub}.mw-parser-output .sr-only{border:0;clip:rect(0,0,0,0);height:1px;margin:-1px;overflow:hidden;padding:0;position:absolute;width:1px}1.87m (6ft 1+12in) with a muscular build and contrasting public personalities with Ronaldo's self-confidence and theatrics a foil to Messi's humility. In addition to being the joint third-highest goalscorer, with four goals and an assist, he created the most chances, completed the most dribbling runs, made the most deliveries into the penalty area and produced the most throughballs in the competition. Even the greatest players to ever play the game of football can't please everyone, especially trolls on social media. On 6 July 2016, Messi and his father were both found guilty of tax fraud and were handed suspended 21-month prison sentences and respectively ordered to pay 1.7million and 1.4million in fines. At the 2018 World Cup, he helped an overmatched Argentine side reach the knockout stage, where they were eliminated by eventual champion France in their first match. [300] On 17 December, Messi finished third in The Best FIFA Men's Player award behind Robert Lewandowski and Cristiano Ronaldo, and was included in the FIFA FIFPro World XI for the fourteenth consecutive year. [43] Under Guardiola and subsequent managers, he most often played in a false nine role; positioned as a centre-forward or lone striker, he would roam the centre, often moving deep into midfield and drawing defenders with him, in order to create and exploit spaces for passes, other teammates' attacking runs off the ball, Messi's own dribbling runs, or combinations with Xavi and Iniesta. You don't have to overthink this one. Out of contract, he signed for Paris Saint-Germain in August 2021. [378], Despite their poor qualifying campaign, Argentina were considered title contenders at the World Cup in South Africa. He is nicknamed Abe or Abeja, due to his last name similarity with the word abeja (Spanish for bee). [617][618] Messi has served as a UNICEF goodwill ambassador since his appointment in March 2010, completing his first field mission for the organisation four months later as he travelled to Haiti to bring public awareness to the plight of the country's children in the wake of the recent earthquake. 10 Barcelona Shirt", "Barcelona's Lionel Messi Becomes Most Decorated Player in History after Winning Unprecedented Fourth Straight Ballon d'Or", "FIFA Refuses to Back Lionel Messi or Godfrey Chitalu for Goal Record", "Barcelona Star Lionel Messi Sets New Goal-Scoring Record", "Ballon d'Or Contenders Messi, Ronaldo and Iniesta in Profile", "A Sense of Anticlimax but Barcelona Still Deserve Their La Liga Title", "Captain Messi Inspires Another Bara League Triumph", "Andrs Iniesta Admission That Barcelona Suffer from 'Messi-Dependence' Proved against PSG", "Messidependencia Brought into Focus as Barcelona Show Vulnerability", "Rumours of Lionel Messi Rift with Barcelona Rubbished Be Representatives of the Argentina International", "Messi 'Breaks Record' by Scoring in 17th Consecutive La Liga Game", "Lionel Messi Awarded Golden Shoe for Third Time after 46 La Liga Goals for Barcelona", "Lionel Andrs Messi Cuccittini: Matches 201213", "Lionel Messi Returns from Injury in Barcelona Victory", "Cristiano Ronaldo Wins FIFA Ballon D'or after Stellar Year at Real Madrid", "Real Madrid v Barcelona: Has Ronaldo Overtaken Messi? [620], In addition to his work with UNICEF, Messi founded his own charitable organisation, the Leo Messi Foundation, which supports access to health care, education, and sport for children. [137][140], Barcelona had virtually secured their La Liga title by the start of 2013, eventually equalling Real Madrid's 100-point record of the previous season. [438] In Argentina's second game on 21 June, the team lost 30 to Croatia. [495][496], Tactically, Messi plays in a free attacking role; a versatile player, he is capable of attacking on either wing or through the centre of the pitch. Ronaldo is the all-time leader in international goals with 118 for his country, Portugal, in 196 international caps, plus over 700 more at club level through just under 1,000 club appearances. [137] Although FIFA did not acknowledge the achievement, citing verifiability issues, he received the Guinness World Records title for most goals scored in a calendar year. Go to them; give a tiny detail of your team, especially funny aspects of your team. He won the award in 2019, pipping Liverpool centre-back Virgil van Dijk and Cristiano Ronaldo, then of Juventus, to the trophy. He set up his side's first goal and scored twice to end the match in an emphatic 62 victory, the team's greatest-ever score at Real Madrid's Santiago Bernabu Stadium. [405] At the close of the tournament, he was reportedly selected to receive the Most Valuable Player award but rejected the honour. He was so disappointed that he did not celebrate his team's victory over Arsenal in Paris, something he later came to regret. [447][448], Following the tournament, Messi stated that he would not participate in Argentina's friendlies against Guatemala and Colombia in September, and commented that it would be unlikely that he would represent his nation for the remainder of the calendar year. 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