To become a true great

[I Just Blue Myself]

Messi didn't need to listen to Sabella because he's told him what to say.

Perhaps he just had awful gas and flatulanty rather than blatantly ignored the manager. Really! talk about making a mountain out of a mole hill.

( not you but the thread in general). None of us know what was going on.


Messi has carried this team into the final. Like Barcelona , Argentina would be average , plodding a lot better than England without him. They did well against Germany because they defended properly. Even then the Germans had a couple of chances. So too Argentina.

It was a very enjoyable game with very little room for the slightest mistake. Argentina were beaten by an excellent goal. A goal that stays in the memory... a la Mackenzie at Wembley .

What seems more likely? He was in it for himself, the whole team had grouped together, showing a sign of unity- he felt he was too important. Awful behavior whatever spin you will try and no doubt put on it.


He absolutely did not carry the team into the final. Players like Zabaleta, Mascherano, Demichellis and even the keeper did by keeping them strong at the back and tough to break down.
Messi had moments in the tournament and he wasn't awful but he certainly didn't perform anywhere near his best. It was his chance to stake a claim to be regarded as the best ever and in the semi final and then the final he was anonymous.

It was a Germany side with an unbelivably slow centre back in Hummels and Boateng who was given the run around by Danny fucking Welbeck at Old Trafford.
He played for himself and not the team.
It's a joke he was awarded player of the tournament.

Bullshit post. Only right thing in there is the fact that he did not perform near his best. But then HIS BEST is fuckin' out of this world. He still had a very good tournament & without his goals Argentina would've been sent packing in the group stage.



He also, again, had to vomit during the game.

[I Just Blue Myself]

Fuck the haters. If Higuain or Palacio weren't absolute dogshit & took their chances like actual footballers, Messi would've 'won it' & considered an unquestionable all-time great alongside the likes of Pele & Maradona.

[zuricity]

Messi didn't need to listen to Sabella because he's told him what to say.

Perhaps he just had awful gas and flatulanty rather than blatantly ignored the manager. Really! talk about making a mountain out of a mole hill.

( not you but the thread in general). None of us know what was going on.


Messi has carried this team into the final. Like Barcelona , Argentina would be average , plodding a lot better than England without him. They did well against Germany because they defended properly. Even then the Germans had a couple of chances. So too Argentina.

It was a very enjoyable game with very little room for the slightest mistake. Argentina were beaten by an excellent goal. A goal that stays in the memory... a la Mackenzie at Wembley .

What seems more likely? He was in it for himself, the whole team had grouped together, showing a sign of unity- he felt he was too important. Awful behavior whatever spin you will try and no doubt put on it.


He absolutely did not carry the team into the final. Players like Zabaleta, Mascherano, Demichellis and even the keeper did by keeping them strong at the back and tough to break down.
Messi had moments in the tournament and he wasn't awful but he certainly didn't perform anywhere near his best. It was his chance to stake a claim to be regarded as the best ever and in the semi final and then the final he was anonymous.

It was a Germany side with an unbelivably slow centre back in Hummels and Boateng who was given the run around by Danny fucking Welbeck at Old Trafford.
He played for himself and not the team.
It's a joke he was awarded player of the tournament.

Bullshit post. Only right thing in there is the fact that he did not perform near his best. But then HIS BEST is fuckin' out of this world. He still had a very good tournament & without his goals Argentina would've been sent packing in the group stage.



He also, again, had to vomit during the game.

thanks for that.

[Ted Hughes]

But if Maradona had been playing, they would have won it.

And he's a wanker for wandering off during the team talk. Whatever bullshit you put on it; that was well out of order & had it been anyone BUT Messi there wouldn't be one person defending it.

[JamieMCFC]

But if Maradona had been playing, they would have won it.

And he's a wanker for wandering off during the team talk. Whatever bullshit you put on it; that was well out of order & had it been anyone BUT Messi there wouldn't be one person defending it.

Probably still upset they forgot his birthday a couple of weeks ago.

[Niall Quinns Discopants]

Fuck the haters. If Higuain or Palacio weren't absolute dogshit & took their chances like actual footballers, Messi would've 'won it' & considered an unquestionable all-time great alongside the likes of Pele & Maradona.

Correct.
He has won Olympic gold and now taken Argentina to World Cup final. He has proven himself at the world stage and can genuinely be considered one of the best ever.

[Dameerto]

i guess we will have to thank Messi for the clean sheets during those one goal victories then - since he took the team to the final.

[Wooders]

Hes one of the best ever, no question, but sadly that cup final performance will blemish his career forevermore
Not saying it's fair, but there is no escaping it for Lionel

[Ted Hughes]

It goes without saying that Messi is one of the greats, but his recent showings have proved, imo, that he's not on the level of Maradona etc. I thought he was, but he just got the chance to prove it & instead of emulating Maradona, he emulated Gerrard & Spiceboy.

The absolute best also play for the team.

[Pretty Boy Lee]

It goes without saying that Messi is one of the greats, but his recent showings have proved, imo, that he's not on the level of Maradona etc. I thought he was, but he just got the chance to prove it & instead of emulating Maradona, he emulated Gerrard & Spiceboy.

The absolute best also play for the team.

I'm with you on this one. Had a fantastic group stage, but got progressively worse as the tournament went on for me. Blew one chance and consistently tried to hold the ball too long and be the hero throughout the game.

I said early if the argies learn to pass they'll win it all and sadly they started to gel, but the difference was Germany did gel completely. Not in patches, in total. Look at the 3rd and 4th goals v Brazil and youse before they score the ball is in positions where selfish players would have shot, but instead they looked for each other and made sure.

[zuricity]

It goes without saying that Messi is one of the greats, but his recent showings have proved, imo, that he's not on the level of Maradona etc. I thought he was, but he just got the chance to prove it & instead of emulating Maradona, he emulated Gerrard & Spiceboy.

The absolute best also play for the team.

I'm with you on this one. Had a fantastic group stage, but got progressively worse as the tournament went on for me. Blew one chance and consistently tried to hold the ball too long and be the hero throughout the game.

I said early if the argies learn to pass they'll win it all and sadly they started to gel, but the difference was Germany did gel completely. Not in patches, in total. Look at the 3rd and 4th goals v Brazil and youse before they score the ball is in positions where selfish players would have shot, but instead they looked for each other and made sure.

The german third goal , whilst taken excellently on the weaker foot by Kroos. Was the result of Müller totally mishitting his chance. Even when playing very well the deflections rolled perfectly for the Germans .

[Bridge'srightfoot]

Fuck the haters. If Higuain or Palacio weren't absolute dogshit & took their chances like actual footballers, Messi would've 'won it' & considered an unquestionable all-time great alongside the likes of Pele & Maradona.

Correct.
He has won Olympic gold and now taken Argentina to World Cup final. He has proven himself at the world stage and can genuinely be considered one of the best ever.

I don't see how you can say he 'took' them to the final. He took them out the group stages but he was average and progressively worse in the knock out rounds. Other players, especially their backline and Mascherano had more of an impact in the knockout rounds by keeping clean sheets.

Certainly a great, one of the best ever and arguably the best player of modern times but he really had a chance to stake his claim to be regarded in the same light as the likes of Pele and Maradona and he didn't take it.
And imo, you have to do it at the biggest stage.

[DoomMerchant]

The kid is fried physically and emotionally. You could see it in both his performances aND his body language. A better manager would have selected Tevez and given Messi a day off before the knockout rounds or in one of those matches.

He tried to do too much and was burnt. He believes everything people have written in this thread I'm sure and probably agrees with the blown chance.

Too many matches those legs. Nothing more imho.

[Sideshow Bob]

messi has been a spent force for 2 seasons running. I don't think he's even a top 3 player anymore, let alone the best in the world. sure, he's still managed to score and he's had some moments of brilliance, but can anyone seriously say he's even half as good as he was, e.g. when barca won the treble? he was basically anonymous against us, aside from winning a shit penalty. and in spite of nonsense stats like "most accurate through balls" his WC was fucking poor. unless he moves to another club and regains his motication - which plainly won't happen given the silly money required for a player who is seemingly past his best - I don't expect him to ever reach the heights he once did. and he will always be second best to maradonna.

[JamieMCFC]

The kid is fried physically and emotionally. You could see it in both his performances aND his body language. A better manager would have selected Tevez and given Messi a day off before the knockout rounds or in one of those matches.

Tevez hasn't been called up since his mid-season golf trip when he was with us.

[The Italian Job]

messi has been a spent force for 2 seasons running. I don't think he's even a top 3 player anymore, let alone the best in the world. sure, he's still managed to score and he's had some moments of brilliance, but can anyone seriously say he's even half as good as he was, e.g. when barca won the treble? he was basically anonymous against us, aside from winning a shit penalty. and in spite of nonsense stats like "most accurate through balls" his WC was fucking poor. unless he moves to another club and regains his motication - which plainly won't happen given the silly money required for a player who is seemingly past his best - I don't expect him to ever reach the heights he once did. and he will always be second best to maradonna.

Not top 3? Of course. Who's better then? Hopefully not Suarez, who made sure his national team got elimanated when he bit a player & hasn't played Champions League in the last 4 seasons, nevermind won it & scored the obscene amount of goals Messi did (8 in 7 games last season fwiw).

Messi might have fallen a bit behind his past best & Ronaldo may have had a better term last season (apart from the WC*), but not a top 3 player? Jesus Christ.

*Now people, THAT was not only fucking poor, but an absolutely pathetic showing by a top 3 player. Almost the opposite of scoring the winning goal in every group game (2 in the 90th minute) and assisting the winning goal in the 120th min. in the round of 16.

And what about injuries & sickness? Are we not accounting for those? We should sell Aguero then, as he was fucking gash in every single WC game.

[DoomMerchant]

The kid is fried physically and emotionally. You could see it in both his performances aND his body language. A better manager would have selected Tevez and given Messi a day off before the knockout rounds or in one of those matches.

Tevez hasn't been called up since his mid-season golf trip when he was with us.

Which is criminal imho.

Cheers

[Sideshow Bob]

messi has been a spent force for 2 seasons running. I don't think he's even a top 3 player anymore, let alone the best in the world. sure, he's still managed to score and he's had some moments of brilliance, but can anyone seriously say he's even half as good as he was, e.g. when barca won the treble? he was basically anonymous against us, aside from winning a shit penalty. and in spite of nonsense stats like "most accurate through balls" his WC was fucking poor. unless he moves to another club and regains his motication - which plainly won't happen given the silly money required for a player who is seemingly past his best - I don't expect him to ever reach the heights he once did. and he will always be second best to maradonna.

Not top 3? Of course. Who's better then? Hopefully not Suarez, who made sure his national team got elimanated when he bit a player & hasn't played Champions League in the last 4 seasons, nevermind won it & scored the obscene amount of goals Messi did (8 in 7 games last season fwiw).

Messi might have fallen a bit behind his past best & Ronaldo may have had a better term last season (apart from the WC*), but not a top 3 player? Jesus Christ.

*Now people, THAT was not only fucking poor, but an absolutely pathetic showing by a top 3 player. Almost the opposite of scoring the winning goal in every group game (2 in the 90th minute) and assisting the winning goal in the 120th min. in the round of 16.

And what about injuries & sickness? Are we not accounting for those? We should sell Aguero then, as he was fucking gash in every single WC game.

better than messi on current form: ronaldo, robben, suarez (yes). u could also make an argument for lahm and yaya.

[Bridge'srightfoot]

messi has been a spent force for 2 seasons running. I don't think he's even a top 3 player anymore, let alone the best in the world. sure, he's still managed to score and he's had some moments of brilliance, but can anyone seriously say he's even half as good as he was, e.g. when barca won the treble? he was basically anonymous against us, aside from winning a shit penalty. and in spite of nonsense stats like "most accurate through balls" his WC was fucking poor. unless he moves to another club and regains his motication - which plainly won't happen given the silly money required for a player who is seemingly past his best - I don't expect him to ever reach the heights he once did. and he will always be second best to maradonna.

Haha I saw that too. 'Most accurate through balls' and 'most interceptions as an attacker'. What else? 'Most powerful shots for an under 6 footer'? Talk about scraping the barrel to try and prove a point. Since when has anyone ever used those shitty stats to judge a player?!

[nottsblue]

messi has been a spent force for 2 seasons running. I don't think he's even a top 3 player anymore, let alone the best in the world. sure, he's still managed to score and he's had some moments of brilliance, but can anyone seriously say he's even half as good as he was, e.g. when barca won the treble? he was basically anonymous against us, aside from winning a shit penalty. and in spite of nonsense stats like "most accurate through balls" his WC was fucking poor. unless he moves to another club and regains his motication - which plainly won't happen given the silly money required for a player who is seemingly past his best - I don't expect him to ever reach the heights he once did. and he will always be second best to maradonna.

Not top 3? Of course. Who's better then? Hopefully not Suarez, who made sure his national team got elimanated when he bit a player & hasn't played Champions League in the last 4 seasons, nevermind won it & scored the obscene amount of goals Messi did (8 in 7 games last season fwiw).

Messi might have fallen a bit behind his past best & Ronaldo may have had a better term last season (apart from the WC*), but not a top 3 player? Jesus Christ.

*Now people, THAT was not only fucking poor, but an absolutely pathetic showing by a top 3 player. Almost the opposite of scoring the winning goal in every group game (2 in the 90th minute) and assisting the winning goal in the 120th min. in the round of 16.

And what about injuries & sickness? Are we not accounting for those? We should sell Aguero then, as he was fucking gash in every single WC game.

better than messi on current form: ronaldo, robben, suarez (yes). u could also make an argument for lahm and yaya.

add lbra and neUer to that list