So, Messi scored his 500th professional goal last night, in Barca’s 2-1 loss to Valencia.
Now Messi is a good player and should be rightly eulogised but I don’t think he’s as great as all that. 500 goals is a fantastic acheivement but, had he been in the Premier League or Italy, would he have scored so many?
There’s an infographic comparing him to Ronaldo in a BBC article
I don’t know if this is trying to say Messi is better than Ronaldo but Ronaldo spent a lot of his early career in the Portugese and Premier Leagues where goal scoring is harder.
I also think that Messi’s international goal scoring record (not that great) show’s him up somewhat!
Am I being overly harsh or is he really the best thing since slice bread?
I think he is the best player of his generation. His first half display against Arsenal in 2010 was probably the greatest 45 minutes of football I have ever seen from one player.
Messi (used to)play with such joy - was a delight to watch even when what he attempted did not come off - he did not get frustrated when team mates were unable to do what he did or make that pass…then again with the Barcelona midfield as it was, that was a rare thing and possibly one of the reasons why he was never as prolific internationally.
Ronaldo is an egotsitical cunt. Yes a great player, but its his attitude, his arrogance and the way he gets all ‘miserable fucker’ when things dont come off or his team mates fuck up…
So for me the short arsed boy Lionel is king…becaus ehe is nicer
There was some analysis suggesting that a great many of his goals come from the late stages of games, against tired opponents. Fantastic player. Would like to see him in a more competitive league.
I also think that Messi’s international goal scoring record (not that great) show’s him up somewhat!
50 in 107? How is that showing him up? That’s just under 0.5 per game, which is still very decent at club level, and pretty darn good at international level.
Am I being overly harsh or is he really the best thing since slice bread?
Yes. He’s one of the best ever. I really can’t understand how that is even in doubt tbh.
If Jamie Vardy can score 20+ goals in the Premier League, I struggle to see how Messi couldn’t hack it. No slight on Vardy, I’ve loved what he’s done this year, but he’s not close to the class of Messi.
Him and Ronaldo are both unreal. Messi, however, is 10 times the team player Cristiano is. Which is why, the team Messi plays for wins so much more.
I also think that Messi’s international goal scoring record (not that great) show’s him up somewhat!
50 in 107? How is that showing him up? That’s just under 0.5 per game, which is still very decent at club level, and pretty darn good at international level.
Sorry, may be I should have said against the better teams! Has he ever golden booted at any of the major tournaments, I know his World Cup goal scoring record isn’t fantastic.
Am I being overly harsh or is he really the best thing since slice bread?
Yes. He’s one of the best ever. I really can’t understand how that is even in doubt tbh.
If Jamie Vardy can score 20+ goals in the Premier League, I struggle to see how Messi couldn’t hack it. No slight on Vardy, I’ve loved what he’s done this year, but he’s not close to the class of Messi.
Different players, different systems, Vardy is all pace and getting on to the long ball. Messi is close ball control running at defenders and, as Pap has pointed out, a large percentage of his goals are in the last 20 minutes against tiring defences. Would he have scored so much against tighter defences over a full league season.
Him and Ronaldo are both unreal. Messi, however, is 10 times the team player Cristiano is. Which is why, the team Messi plays for wins so much more.
Messi’s close ball control it phenomenal, how he manages to make it stick is unbelievable. Ronaldo is a different player but still has wonderful control.
I just don’t think that you can put Messi on a pedestal based on his goal scoring record, look at how many goals the Barcelona triumvariate have scored this season. Would that happen in any other major league in Europe?
I just don’t think that you can put Messi on a pedestal based on his goal scoring record, look at how many goals the Barcelona triumvariate have scored this season. Would that happen in any other major league in Europe?
Hmm, I think you make some fair(ish) points in the rest of your post. Not that I entirely agree with all of them.
On this one, I know it is hypothetical so we wont ever really know - but I do think MSN would destroy any league they played in. I think there is a strong argument that all 3 of them are in the top 5 attackers in the world right now (imo Ronaldo & Aguero would probably be the other 2).
Ronaldo & Suarez have both shown they can do it here. I’ve also watched Neymar get kicked up in the air everytime anyone can get near him, and still shred teams apart. It literally took someone breaking his back to stop him in the World Cup. Granted, Messi is a different player, but I still see nothing to suggest that he couldn’t hack it.
I take the point about the Prem being ‘stronger’, but for all that talk Spanish teams have by and large dispatched of English teams in Europe of late.
I also think it is unfair to say anyone is judging Messi solely on his goalscoring. He is a lot more than just that. As I said before, he is a team player and a hard worker. Contributes a shedload of assists, and I’d argue that those late goals he scores against tired defences come as a result of him knackering out said defenders with his running. I’ve seen him in the flesh a couple of times, he never stops moving!
I just don’t think that you can put Messi on a pedestal based on his goal scoring record , look at how many goals the Barcelona triumvariate have scored this season. Would that happen in any other major league in Europe?
I don’t think anyone is.
In fact, I think people rave about him because there is so much to his play than just goals. He plays the kind of football we all dreamt about playing as kids. And he does it with good grace and humility. When’s he’s on form (which is most of the time) he is unplayable. There’s been no other player since Maradona (and probably before) who’s been as good.
To even question his status as one of the all time greats is a joke, basically.
One last thing…how would he get on against defences in the Premier League? Seriously, Premier League defences are shite compared to the top Spanish league defences. And he slices and dices them week in week out.
