In truth... I'd probably be the biggest wanker ever.
Lionel Messi
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In truth... I'd probably be the biggest wanker ever.
Messi spitting the dummy out and throwing a training jacket onto the ground while sitting with a petted lip. In fact, no, that wasn't him.
Nothing. He walked past his manager without acknowledging him and looked fed up. Nothing that doesn't happen all the time but which doesn't normally get more than a "sulky bugger" from the crowd. Unluckily for Messi, he's getting the Ronaldo slow motion action replay treatment of every gesture and every facial expression - especially anything that might be directed towards a teammate or the manager.
Last week it was him shouting, "Next time, pass it to me," at Neymar.
The halo has slipped, but to be honest it should never have been there in the first place. He's just human. A great player, but human.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-24292849
I wonder if Florentino Perez will be the judge at the hearing
I wonder if Florentino Perez will be the judge at the hearing
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-24292849
I wonder if Florentino Perez will be the judge at the hearing
GUILTY!
On the bright side, it could be worse, it could be Cal?!
He'll get the book thrown at his father and agent.
The new house Messi wants to build. Looks quite impressive actually.
http://metro.co.uk/2013/10/04/takin...set-to-build-football-inspired-house-4134303/
http://metro.co.uk/2013/10/04/takin...set-to-build-football-inspired-house-4134303/
Indeed. At least it is relevant to football, unline Gary Nevilles tribute to the Teletubbies:
The above looks hideous.
You lot should steer clear of tabloid 'journalism'. This has already been rubbished by Messi's family. The architect in question said this was a project by his students for a proposed idea for Messi
Thanks for letting me know. I'll take it with a pinch of salt next time.
Interesting article. Think calling Messi the greatest by the time he is 24 or 25 is a bit premature. He still needs a defining moment for Argentina in word cups IMO. Still, he is comfortably in the top tier.
Nothing in this article we haven't heard of yet.. I think he's trying to find the "balance" by going too far to the other side of the argument...
Also, complaining about Messi's picture appearing in an article about a match when he scored one of Barcelona's two goals, when Xavi was chosen man of the match, yet he mentioned Pele's name many times as "winning 3 world cups", knowing (probably) fully that he didn't even feature effectively in the 1962 world cup, and Brazil won it on its own without Pele. Bandwagon journalism Mr. "Midfield Maestro"?
There are a lot of other contradictions in the article, but it has all already been discussed here, so no need to go into it again. Let me just quote him on this:
Okay...
Also this article is almost 2 years old.
These are the very same that have classed Messi and the other one as 1st and 2nd place over the last few years. I stopped reading it when he stated:Wtf!!!! He is shite and always will be. This guy obviously watched more of QPR than he did of Barcelona.
He looks off the pace currently, I was watching some highlights from 09-10, he has lost a yard of pace. With Neymar and Alexis producing so consistently there is less pressure on him but he is not playing so well since his return.
not just me then? I think he looks a little slower too, not sure if its just injuries taking its toll.
On the subject of Alexis, I havent seen Barca too much this season, but when I have and Alexis has scored, his all round play has still been absolutely rotten, he's got a dreadful touch and zero footballing intelligence for a barcelona player.
Sport is not always reliable but they rarely dish on a club player, especially a player like Messi...but there's a story tonight that the club Captains intend to meet up with Messi to see what is wrong (Acknowledging that something is indeed wrong) and how to correct it. If true, could be a very troubling scenario
Get in there Moyesy.
Something is desperately wrong with the lad, he's only got a miserly 12 in 14 this season. Finished. Ronaldo wins.
Yup. He's bored of Barca, unhappy with the new regime and wants out according to my sources.
Maybe its tax season in Spain and he's depressed that he might actually have to pay this time.
Or a back injury from carrying the side the past few years.
Well Ronaldo got 20. Need to have some catch up to do. 3~4 matches should be enough.
Maybe the little infant inside him is wailing for united.
That article originally linked seems a bit bizzare - I've not read it all yet but the first two points are ridiculous.
First point about globalisation of media etc - I would say that works AGAINST players as much as anything. Every detail is scrutinised and there is no room for exaggeration. The likes of Pele were not actually seen by plenty of people, and I am sure there are many who have simply heard the great stories of him, and believe him to be the best. But how do we know when we didn't actually see him week in week out? We just go by rumour and stories, it all becomes something of a myth.
I am a firm believer that teams now are far more organised defensively, and harder to score against than in days gone by. Sometimes when I see old clips of Best, Keegan etc I think "ok, he did well, but the defending was shite, he would never have scored that goal today."
This is crucial for me. It is hard to compare players from different ages but as the game has evolved I suspect that if you took one of the all time greats like Pele or Maradona and got them to play a season in today's game,they wouldn't look as impressive as they did back in their day. Doesn't mean they wouldn't be brilliant, but I can't imagine them being any better than Messi.
With all due respect, you seem to have a lot of misconceptions.
Brnwd and others have frequently posted statistics from serie a when maradona played in it and the number of goals scored in the league back then was nothing compared to what barca and madrid do in la liga these days. So I'd do a bit of research if I was you regarding the defences the likes of maradona played against before deciding and feeling so strongly that defences these days are so organised in comparison to what they were back then.
As someone who hasn't watched that era, I would say that the assumption that teams in general (not talking about a specific league now) would master the art of defending better with time, at least compared to the 50s and 60s, would be fair. But at the same time it would be silly to assume that going forward and in possession teams have stayed exactly the same and not developed more refined methods to aid their star players and the team in general.
The same goes for your theory about the media. I would expect the media to analyse and highlight flaws these days which would possibly not be noticed 50 years back but at the same time don't you think players achievements and image gets built up a thousand times greater. If pele did something back then you didn't have a thousand tweets being broadcast instantly creating a gigantic bandwagon for people to jump onto.
There's really no way that it's now more difficult to score for Messi than it was for Maradona in Serie A of the 80's, just watch a few games, defensive organisation was on a completely different level and there's a reason why the rules were changed to give an advantage to the attacking players in the last 20 years, all the new offside rules or the fact that the keeper isn't allowed to pick up the ball after a pass from his teammates made defensive organisation much more difficult. Also the change to 3 points for a win made it necessary to play more attacking football, instead of being happy with a draw a lot. The 80's were by far the most cynical time in football with defending at its peak. FIFA will make sure that it won't be like that ever again.
It's maybe a valid point for the 60's and 70's, but that's still arguably, because the pitches, shoes and the ball today is such a massive advantage for the attacking players in comparison to back then. It's no coincidence that Barca instantly cries when they don't play on a perfect pitch. Just look at the reactions when Milan played Barca a few weeks back and Milan wasn't too careful with the pitch for a week or when Bayern watered the central area of the pitch in the CL semi final last season. If that massively affects the players today, than it's ridiculous to claim that the players from back in the day would struggle today, because the other way round it would probably be way worse.
Yeah I have definitely noticed that drop in pace from Messi. He seems to coast around picking 4 or 5 moments to go into overdrive and this usually results in a goal or two and maybe an assist. Alexis has improved, he will never be on the wavelength of the Barca lads but as an a attacking threat he has improved, he is much more confident, defensively he always puts in a shift too. His passing isn't on the level of the others.
This new manager is not letting him have things his way and I don't think he lies that. When I saw him wide right against Real I was shocked. Messi leaving Barca would be unbelievable, more likely the manager leaves before he does. He just seems to be going through the motions from what I have seen.
The more I've thought about it, the more I realize there's another possibility I failed to initially consider. Perhaps it's the captains who are not happy with the way the team is playing under Tata and hence the meeting with Leo (Also a captain). Especially if you accept the theory that Martino was a Messi approved hire. It's a strange leak by Sport, IMO, but it goes to show that despite being undefeated and setting even more records, there are mounting concerns at the club - not just over Messi's level of play
The team is doing well, if Messi has a problem that would not be good because he is getting more attacking help from his fellow forwards now, which in theory makes the team more of a threat going forward.
The coach was an odd hire for me have you been satisfied with his performance and how he has the team playing?
Early in the season around this time last year, Tito was on a record setting pace as well. Yet the differences under Tata, for me, are striking. I love the return of the high pressing and solidifying the defense - I see them caught out far less, perhaps owing to the lack of bombing fullback runs that we've been accustomed to under Pep.
Still, something isn't right and the joga bonito that many fans are used to is noticeably absent apart from some isolated moments in matches. Xavi & Iniesta influence matches less which is also reflected in the stats that show the forward players leading in assists and goals. Particularly odd when you consider how much the success of the club's philosophy is predicated on the midfielders.
So while I like Tata as well as some of the things he's reemphasized, I also see a less courageous coach than say Pep who was famous for his bravery in owning the ball & attack. Martino didn't really get a preseason with the team so he's been thrust into an unusual position having to learn on the fly so to speak. Perhaps in time we'll see a better realization of the vision he has for the team but I think it's natural to be concerned that there's been a loss of the team's style, even early on.
It's also interesting to consider how Messi views all of these changes, especially if you believe that Tata was an approved hire by his camp. Because earlier in the season, he was a beast in his pressing and giving room to Neymar to shine but now I am beginning to see a player who is not only less of a focal point but way off his usual form. Speculative to conclude whether that's only down to his fitness but his body language suggests something is not right...and I'm concerned that it's not fitness
It's true though that the attacking trident is potentially the best it's been since Titi & Samu were here but Messi's influence (Along with Xavi & Iniesta) has waned of late. Could just be players resistant to some of the changes Tata has employed after years of doing things another way but it could be more than that.
Still, something isn't right and the joga bonito that many fans are used to is noticeably absent apart from some isolated moments in matches. Xavi & Iniesta influence matches less which is also reflected in the stats that show the forward players leading in assists and goals. Particularly odd when you consider how much the success of the club's philosophy is predicated on the midfielders.
So while I like Tata as well as some of the things he's reemphasized, I also see a less courageous coach than say Pep who was famous for his bravery in owning the ball & attack. Martino didn't really get a preseason with the team so he's been thrust into an unusual position having to learn on the fly so to speak. Perhaps in time we'll see a better realization of the vision he has for the team but I think it's natural to be concerned that there's been a loss of the team's style, even early on.
It's also interesting to consider how Messi views all of these changes, especially if you believe that Tata was an approved hire by his camp. Because earlier in the season, he was a beast in his pressing and giving room to Neymar to shine but now I am beginning to see a player who is not only less of a focal point but way off his usual form. Speculative to conclude whether that's only down to his fitness but his body language suggests something is not right...and I'm concerned that it's not fitness
It's true though that the attacking trident is potentially the best it's been since Titi & Samu were here but Messi's influence (Along with Xavi & Iniesta) has waned of late. Could just be players resistant to some of the changes Tata has employed after years of doing things another way but it could be more than that.
He's past it.
Whether Pele was the best or greatest is very subjective but you do not have to have to have seen him or the other 'top tier greats' regularly to come to the view that he was at least a great player. There is plenty of historical evidence to come to a reasoned view that Pele, Puskás , Cruyff ect were in fact great players, without ever having seen them live.
As other posters have mentioned, the great modern players get better protection from referees, play on nicer pitches with lighter footballs. You can only judge players relatively to the eras and environments they played in.
Well of course they would not, and it really is the wrong way of looking at it. Puskás or Di Stefano cannot help being born and then playing in the era they happened to be in. That does not mean you cannot compare players from different eras relative to the era they played their football in .Quick example. The last place finishers in 2 of the 3 heats in the last years London Olympics semi metres finals, were quicker then Jessie Owen. Yet we all know who is the greater athlete.
Mindblowing.
You have to consider the change in the rules as well. Maradona played when the tackle (hack) from behind was allowed, when the back-pass was still in and before the new off-side law was introduced, which has resulted in more goals being scored.
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