You can't put an order to these goals
Lionel Messi - Performances
- Thread starter Rado_N
- Start date
You can't put an order to these goals
I don't think he was so inventive with his dribbling, or his passing that season. That might be horseshit though. Ridiculously, I struggle to imagine how he could have been any better than he is now, for someone who's already broken all records. Only Messi.
That is mental
It's sad that there's still many missed off that list, such as the Arsenal goals, the AC Milan ones... why is he so good
For me top 3
3 - Getafe, Copa del Messi 2007
2- Athletic, Copa del Messi 2015
1- Real Madrid, UCL 2011
3 - Getafe, Copa del Messi 2007
2- Athletic, Copa del Messi 2015
1- Real Madrid, UCL 2011
He defies logic.
re-writing football
Something that came on my mind yesterday, talking with friends.
Messi is the only player I've seen whose rival supporters celebrate when he loses the ball, like scoring a goal.
And that's what I'm going to tell to my kids (if I become a father in the future) to explain how good he was.
Messi is the only player I've seen whose rival supporters celebrate when he loses the ball, like scoring a goal.
And that's what I'm going to tell to my kids (if I become a father in the future) to explain how good he was.
never thought about that, but yes, that's right
Also never seen a player who get's that sort of level of attention from defenders. Often you'll see 2 or 3 run at him at once, it's like they all want to be able to say they were the one's who take the ball from him.
Similar to the Athletic game the other night, only none of them got the ball
Similar to the Athletic game the other night, only none of them got the ball
I don't know why, I have a soft spot for the first one (against Zaragoza ?), when he retrieves the ball and a split second just beats the tackling defender and jumps over. The next defender is turned inside out and the finish is sublime. Players dream of scoring goals like once in their careers but he has so many of these dream goals.
I'm pretty sure those were the days when Messi started being valorated as the GOAT. I remember AS making a poll and Messi being choosen by the readers as the best ever. It was 2011 I think.
)
During that month he scored the Valencia goal which is on that video (with the classic commentary "Oh magical Messi!")
)
During that month he scored the Valencia goal which is on that video (with the classic commentary "Oh magical Messi!")
messi is decent but he's no Paddy McCourt
Here is probably my favorite Messi video, fecking alien....
Here is probably my favorite Messi video, fecking alien....
The seasons I've enjoyed to watch him the most was the year they won the treble and this one. Probably because he doesn't start centrally, links up often with Alves. His worst season in years is still outstanding.
10/11, 11/12 and this season are the ones that stand out the most to me.
10/11 in terms of him dropping deep and controlling games (like he did in Barcelona's 5-0 win over Madrid) as well as it being his best season in terms of making the difference and being influential in the big games IMO. His goal and assist numbers were incredible that year as was his dribbling.
11/12 because of the unbelievable numbers he put up in terms of end-product. He scored 73 goals and assisted 28 times that season. That is 101 times that he made the difference in the final third during that campaign. That is out of this world and absolutely ridiculous. Also, if I remember correctly, that is the season that I consider to have been his best in terms of the quality of the goals that he scored (ie dribbles and great shots from in and around the edge of the area) although perhaps I am mixing it up with another season as every one of his campaigns consists of a very high number of great individual goals so it is an easy mistake to make.
This campaign also due to his playmaking ability as well as his final pass reaching a new level in addition to him maintaining his very high goal numbers and his dribbling has been excellent also. The team has had to depend on him more this season as the quality of the midfield behind him has declined and is no longer capable of controlling the midfield like it could when Xavi and Iniesta were at their best. He has relished the added responsibility and pressure on his shoulders this season and has thrived with it.
It is hard for me to pick a season out of those three as they are all incredibly special in different ways and you could make an argument for any of them. There is a part of me that is leaning towards 10/11 as that is the season I felt he influenced the big games the most. That is not to say he didn't in 11/12 or this season, but during that campaign, every time Barcelona needed Messi to step up to the plate he did and he was excellent in the games vs Arsenal, Madrid (especially the 5-0 win and in the first leg of the CL semi-final at the Bernabeu, he scored an incredible goal to end the tie) as well as in the final vs United where he was MOTM.
10/11 in terms of him dropping deep and controlling games (like he did in Barcelona's 5-0 win over Madrid) as well as it being his best season in terms of making the difference and being influential in the big games IMO. His goal and assist numbers were incredible that year as was his dribbling.
11/12 because of the unbelievable numbers he put up in terms of end-product. He scored 73 goals and assisted 28 times that season. That is 101 times that he made the difference in the final third during that campaign. That is out of this world and absolutely ridiculous. Also, if I remember correctly, that is the season that I consider to have been his best in terms of the quality of the goals that he scored (ie dribbles and great shots from in and around the edge of the area) although perhaps I am mixing it up with another season as every one of his campaigns consists of a very high number of great individual goals so it is an easy mistake to make.
This campaign also due to his playmaking ability as well as his final pass reaching a new level in addition to him maintaining his very high goal numbers and his dribbling has been excellent also. The team has had to depend on him more this season as the quality of the midfield behind him has declined and is no longer capable of controlling the midfield like it could when Xavi and Iniesta were at their best. He has relished the added responsibility and pressure on his shoulders this season and has thrived with it.
It is hard for me to pick a season out of those three as they are all incredibly special in different ways and you could make an argument for any of them. There is a part of me that is leaning towards 10/11 as that is the season I felt he influenced the big games the most. That is not to say he didn't in 11/12 or this season, but during that campaign, every time Barcelona needed Messi to step up to the plate he did and he was excellent in the games vs Arsenal, Madrid (especially the 5-0 win and in the first leg of the CL semi-final at the Bernabeu, he scored an incredible goal to end the tie) as well as in the final vs United where he was MOTM.
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A MotM performance vs Juve on saturday and this season will be his best ever IMO, but I agree with all this.
That's definitely the top three but I think the Getafe goal has to be top regardless of the occasion, IMO. The level of skill involved in that just blows the others out of the water, which is remarkable in itself because the other two are incredible goals in their own right even if you ignore the occasion.
I want to be him for a day, just to know what it feels like to be that good at something.
His great solo Getafe goal last season often gets overshadowed by the famous 2007 one.
He picks up the ball from the half, goes past 4 defenders including 2 nutmegs, rounds the goalkeeper and puts it in. Only fair that Ray Hudson was the commentator that night
He picks up the ball from the half, goes past 4 defenders including 2 nutmegs, rounds the goalkeeper and puts it in. Only fair that Ray Hudson was the commentator that night
No it isn't.
How is he perceived amongst majority of the Madrid fans? Especially also against "he who must not be named" in this thread!
@Vato
About his fitness this season.
Well, most of us rightly admit that he's the greatest of all time.
Messi's not bad either.
His great solo Getafe goal last season often gets overshadowed by the famous 2007 one.
He picks up the ball from the half, goes past 4 defenders including 2 nutmegs, rounds the goalkeeper and puts it in. Only fair that Ray Hudson was the commentator that night
What's also being overshadowed here is all of his dribbling shows that don't end up with a goal, which are far more, and sometimes even more enjoyable and impressive.
Here is an example:
2006/07 was a great season for him individually, apart from the Maradona-esque goal against Getafe he also scored a lovely hat-trick in the clásico and then there's this beauty, which seems to have been completely forgotten, in the Copa América semi-final against Mexico... the fluidity of that move is just insane.
Also liked this bit, if only they knew...
"Messi was supreme tonight..."
"...And can still improve, he's so young, I mean what could he be? How good could he be?"
Fecking white text just about got me
Surprised no one mentioned yet that he scored a similar goal to the CdR final one in 12/13 against Malaga. Also in the Copa del Rey.
Surprised no one mentioned yet that he scored a similar goal to the CdR final one in 12/13 against Malaga. Also in the Copa del Rey.
wtf is that defender doing? i know its Messi but he would easily got to the ball first.....feck me this is ridiculous, anybody knows who is that clown?
Weligton. He wanted to protect the ball to play it out of the back instead of hoofing it I suppose, given that Pellegrini was manager at the time, but got his pocket picked instead. Messi's ability to dispossess players is very underrated anyway.
Probably because of Welington's brainfart.
Does that video come in English or with subtitles?
He's been a top 3 player in the world since basically his third season of football. Surely nobody else has ever had that kind of consistency?
Even after these many years it's just unbelievable to see the things he can do so effortlessly game after game, year after year. He simply has absolutely mastered what a man can do with a football at his feet, and he did that a while back. Every moment of watching him and following him day in day out is a pleasure and we are fortunate enough to be there to witness it.
Possibly only Pele? Then again at the other end of the scale you've got di Stéfano and others dominating into their mid-30s.
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Still only 27
almost 100 caps and coming up to 50 goals for argentina,
Barcas all time top scorer
7 league titles
3 champions leagues (and a chance to make that 4)
4 ballon dors (almost certainly will be 5)
Its frightening when you think he is approaching the age players typically peak!
Best player I have ever seen and if I ever see one better I will consider myself very lucky - a joy to watch
almost 100 caps and coming up to 50 goals for argentina,
Barcas all time top scorer
7 league titles
3 champions leagues (and a chance to make that 4)
4 ballon dors (almost certainly will be 5)
Its frightening when you think he is approaching the age players typically peak!
Best player I have ever seen and if I ever see one better I will consider myself very lucky - a joy to watch
11/12 was statistically his best season but definitely not performance-wise. 11 of his 14 CL goals that season he scored against Plzen, BATE and Leverkusen, got dispossessed for Drogba's winner at Stamford Bridge and missed a penalty in the return leg. In La Liga for some reason he didn't score away from home until November and Barca dropped lots of points in away games, missed a crucial penalty against Sevilla, scored 9 meaningless goals after Madrid had wrapped up the league in Camp Nou etc. I genuinenly think Cristiano deserved the Ballon d'Or in 2012 (but not in 2013 so it balances out I guess). A 10/10 season for any other player's standards for sure but compared to Messi 14/15 no comparison. The Boateng goal, the Cup final goal, his performance against Man City, his title winning goal against Atletico Madrid ... Just too many memorable big game moments this season beyond the numbers and you can bet your house and wife on it: He will kill it in the CL final once again. Nothing is more certain than Messi showing up big time in a CL final, especially in this type of form he is in.
Fully agree with your assessment of his 2011/12 season (I've often said the same wrt BdO 2012 and 2013 as well), it was one of his highest levels ever in terms of pure productivity, but as you point out he often wasn't the most decisive or valuable player when it mattered that season. Personally, I rate (and like) his 09/10 season more, that's when he really got that aura of an all-timer when before it was obvious he had the potential but that season (following up his marvellous 08/09) proved it without a doubt.
12/13 was another special season for Messi but is completely underrated in hindsight, probably because of the Champions League desaster against Bayern, I don't know. Until his injury against PSG in April he was on 43 goals in 29 games in La Liga and comfortably on course to breaking the 50 goal record which he had set the season before. He was scoring in every single game from November until May. He scored against every team in La Liga in a row. He was the main reason for Barca winning the league at a canter with 100 points. Villa had broken his leg, Pedro and Sanchez were struggling big time infront of goal and the Barca defense was in absolute shambles. Conceded 40 that season, compared to 21 this season -- they let in 4 goals even against relegation team Deportivo and it needed a Messi hattrick to get the 3 points. Sanchez scored his first league goal in February (!) that season and was still Barca's 2nd best goalscorer in the league. Messi was the sole goal threat. As close to a 1 man team as it got that season and everyone saw it when he had to come on against PSG, visibly injured, to save the day. I think it was special that he won Barca the league with 100 points like that. Only Iniesta was playing at a high level that season and at the same wavelength as Messi. But in terms of goal scorers there was only Messi. Compare it to Madrid's 100 point season where Ronaldo, Benzema and Higuain scored 89 goals between them in the league.