I can't imagine Barcelona will let him schlepp to the States to play in the pseudo-Copa tournament going on. I wouldn't if I had the final say.
Lionel Messi - Performances
- Thread starter Rado_N
- Start date
Exactly this really. There is always the temptation to over-analyse where things have gone wrong but the fact is 7 or 8 out of 10 times the CL is usually won by the best team and it simply is very, very difficult to remain the best team for two years running. Stamina, mental exhaustion, form, momentum ... are just a few of the things that can go wrong and even the best side over the past decade is not immune from that.
Aye, true. Even the very best teams like Barca will tend to lose the odd game or two in the league against relatively mediocre teams. When you consider that in the latter stages of the CL they have to avoid doing that against the very best teams around, it becomes an enormously difficult competition to win.
I mean, it's a competition that can quite easily be changed massively be the odd goal or two. If Barca had gotten an equaliser, they might have won the whole competition. If they hadn't in the 2009 semi-final, they'd have been out...despite being a magnificent side.
Probably just a bit of fatigue/exhaustion for Messi too in that regard. There will come a time when he does hit a more terminal decline, but I still think he's got a couple more brilliant seasons in him, and I'd be surprised if he's not pivotal to another Barca CL success in the next couple of years.
They look exhausted, Messi in particular. Not rotating the front three and the number of games seems to have taken its toll. Atletico are the worst team to play against in such circumstances.
Although the focus is on why Barca lost, credit has to go to Simeone and his team, they were fantastic.
Although the focus is on why Barca lost, credit has to go to Simeone and his team, they were fantastic.
Playing him in MF (if those were the tactics by Lucho) is fecking laughable.
I hear he hasn't scored in 5 games now. What's his longest drought?
Anyone know?
Anyone know?
He hadn't scored for 5 games in a row last in April 2010 apparently.
Long time ago. But is 5 the longest drought? I really can't recall a time when Messi hasn't scored for this long.
Yep, they are nowhere near as great when it matters when Messi isn't at his best.
Agree. As I mentioned above though, I can't decide if he's dropped deeper as a consequence of his poor physical state right now (less need to take on players), or if it's a conscious decision. I think he'd still have been in poor form further up the pitch, but the lack of fitness AND playing deeper than he should was a killer.
They certainly coped fine without him when he was injured earlier in the season.
Relatively No pressure early season games are different kettle to knock out stages Cl against big teams in the business end of the season.
Barca are tired, Lucho shuld have rotated more. That's all. Shame, that was a golden opportunity to win the CL again.
I know he should have but Munir is the only other attacker they have. Arda is a midfielder. Think Lucho's hands were abit tied with their small squad.
Arda was a stupid buy. I said so in the summer but got shouted down.
As usual he who barks hardest is not always right, especially when it's me who is meowing the wisdom.
Playing against the likes of Gijon when everything is great isn't the same as games towards the end of season.
Can I join in the "I was right" group please?
Ridiculous buy. He wasn't suitable for any of the positions they play in their normal formation, wasn't young enough and/or good value and seemed to have a crap view on why he wanted to leave Atléti (fed up of running...).
Think he'll be shipped off in the summer.
They beat Madrid at the Bernabeu withouth him (were already in cruise control when he came on), so yeah wasn't just teams like Gijon.
Selling Neymar and Suarez short tbh.
I agree. Barca were doing extremely well without Messi. This doesn't mean that they would have continiued to do that well till the end of the season because they would have been even more tired without Messi. I think that as soon as Messi returned, Neymar's game got instantly worse a notch or two. Neymar was at his best when Messi wasn't in the team. The myth that Neymar only gains form Messi's presence was badly exposed.
Agree with the a lot of that. Don't agree that Neymar's form declined instantly when Messi came back though, he carried on where he left off for a good while.
Yup I agree, that also coincided with people putting Neymar and Suarez ahead of Ronaldo. Remember a lot of people on here said they were 1, 2 & 3 in the world.
It is merely tiredness. Lack of squad rotation done for them. No need to go overboard with the criticism methinks. Messi will be back.
Struggled to find space and stamp his authority on the pitch. Gabi, Godin and Juanfran were immense last night.
He needs rest. They really need to find a way to rotate him a lot more in the next season, or maybe give him a few additional weeks off after the copa this year, start the season without him. He played an insane number of games, both for his club but also for Argentina, making the final of the World Cup in 2014, the Copa in 2015 and now he has to play again a big tournament this summer. Much more than physically it has to be mentally draining.
I wouldn't be surprised if Enrique actually wanted to rotate him a lot more but he simply refuses to and wants to play as many games as possible. It's a difficult decision to make for the manager, if the player simply doesn't listen.
I wouldn't be surprised if Enrique actually wanted to rotate him a lot more but he simply refuses to and wants to play as many games as possible. It's a difficult decision to make for the manager, if the player simply doesn't listen.
He plays where he wants to and runs 7 km per game in average. Lucho already showed that he has zero authority over Messi, so he just let's him play in the center because Messi has no energy to play wide.
It's just like Ronaldo, when it works it's great. When he's not playing well, his team is a man down in transition and defense.
Normally it would be a four year wait until 2019, but they have an extra one this year called the 'Copa America Centenario' because the tournament is 100 years old. It will be in the US and is the first time it's been held outside of South America.
Part of that is down to the transfer ban they received, Arda and Vidal weren't able to start playing until January of course and they lost Xavi and Pedro in the summer. Rafinha would also have had more game time in the forward positions I think to allow for rotation but picked up a bad injury in September and has only just returned. I think this summer they'll return with a stronger squad so long as they hold on to Neymar.
I don't feel sorry for them about that. It's their own fault, they built a crazy top heavy squad, paid ridiculous money for transfers of few top players and top it off with crazy high wages that are damn close to unsustainable despite Barca being a top 5 club in terms of revenue in Europe. They could have acted differently in the transfer market before and after the transfer ban.
Didnt Messi miss around 2 months of action due to an injury this season? He really should not be tired.
Sometimes a bad run of form is just a bad run of form.
I don't think injury lay offs are the same as real rest, real vacation. You lose fitness during that time, need to rebuilt it, you don't really relax because you want to be back as quickly as possible. Having a full summer off is different.
Like you say I think the fatigue is something mental he is having issues with. When he's having a bad game it is often down to being straight out lazy ," while Messi with just seven kilometres was the player noted as covering the least of the starting outfield players. ".
Here is another quote from 2014 against Atletico. - "Lionel Messi slammed for only running 6.8km v Atletico, just a little more than keeper Pinto (5.3km) ".
The second laziest player in the world, Zlatan, averaged 8.4 km. Messi 7.7
FFS Professor
International break probably ruined Barcelona.
I thought last year if Pedro goes and when Xavi retires they may struggle.
No rotation has cost them, this stage of the season you need to be hitting top form, Barcelona have slumped.
Messi potentially the Greatest of all time just doesn't look interested the last few days, it's pre-world cup all over again, he looks like he's running in quick sand right now his dribbling is even average by his standards the last few games.
That's the next Ballon d'Or gone now.
I thought last year if Pedro goes and when Xavi retires they may struggle.
No rotation has cost them, this stage of the season you need to be hitting top form, Barcelona have slumped.
Messi potentially the Greatest of all time just doesn't look interested the last few days, it's pre-world cup all over again, he looks like he's running in quick sand right now his dribbling is even average by his standards the last few games.
That's the next Ballon d'Or gone now.
They won everything last year though - No one was complaining about the squad then. That squad needs a bit of depth added to it and its fine.
Luck plays a major part. If Barca got Benfica/Wolfsburg in the 1/4s and City in the Semis, in a one of game they can beat any team in the world.
Why don't they jack him up with EPO. Or something.
The front players looks completely drained. Its not an excuse really because its the end of the season and Ronaldo has been playing every game too. But it is obvious that they're knackered and their performances are dropping because of it.
Apparently, Messi run only 7 km vs Atleti. That's pathetic in such a big game, tbf. Overall Atleti covered 12 km more ground than Barca.
His through balls are amazing. And it's not even a good game for him
That 5th Ballon d'Or will be his last
For the first time ever I think he could do with a move away.
Only so many times you can raise your game for a path thats been trodden many times.
New teammates, new mentality, new style of play and a new experience in a foreign land.
Only so many times you can raise your game for a path thats been trodden many times.
New teammates, new mentality, new style of play and a new experience in a foreign land.