Messi can move centrally as a 10 to extend his career. He'll still be a top 3 passer in the world at 33, after all. He'll be better than a very, very good 10 like Mata or Ozil is now.
Basically, he'll be prime Zidane, would be my guess.
Top 10 in world shopping list
- Thread starter RedTillI'mDead
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Messi can move centrally as a 10 to extend his career. He'll still be a top 3 passer in the world at 33, after all. He'll be better than a very, very good 10 like Mata or Ozil is now.
Basically, he'll be prime Zidane, would be my guess.
It's all speculation, though. Who's to say he doesn't decline hugely and just become average, ala Ronaldinho? I also think he'll move into a no.10 role, but being as good as prime Zidane when he's 33 years of age? I highly doubt that. Zidane was pretty fecking good and his position is a tough one to play -- it might not even suit Messi.
Is this list the most expensive players, or the most desirable? If the latter, Cavani shouldn't be anywhere near it. Astonishingly overrated player.
I don't want us to sign Cavani at all. The point I was trying to make is that Cavani is the only player on that list who would genuinely be interested in joining United.
Well, yeah. We're projecting 5 years from now. Of course it's speculation.
Pretty sure being a 10 will suit Messi fine, though. He's been great as a false 9 and a RW and often at RW he comes inside and plays as a 10 for large sections of the game.
He's a very different player to zidane and there's no way he'd be able to adjust his game to being prime zidane at that age. Just doesn't play the game the same way.
I think he'll adjust his game as he gets older. He's miles ahead of everyone else and while he won't be doing what he did to Bilbao in the Copa Del Rey final at the age of 33, he'll still be making the kind of brilliant chipped passes and through balls he played this year.
And if he becomes a 10 or moves to Iniesta's position (but on the right) he'll have an attacker on his side to play in too. Currently, he is on the right side of a front 3 and cuts inside and hits Neymar over the top with incredible frequency. But if he was a 10 in a 4-2-3-1 like Zidane did in the 2006 World Cup for France or was a narrow winger in the 4-2-2-2 setup Zidane often played with at Madrid he'd have an extra attacker in front of him making runs over the top to pick out. We see this here with Mata on the right side of a 4-3-3 having less playmaking options (and so, less assists) than he had when he was central as a 10 in a 4-2-3-1 for Chelsea.
Playing like zidane was much more about getting the team to function rather than chipped passes or through balls. That's the sort of stuff Messi doesn't have.
£140m for Hazard?? 
Stopped reading when OP said Rooney should be near top10. Cavani at 60 million?
Seems like the type to make the move from Barcelona to Madrid.
What list is this? Any sources?
I am missing some of the most interesting names like Reus, Griezmann, Koke, De Bruyne, Müller, Lewandowski etc.
I am missing some of the most interesting names like Reus, Griezmann, Koke, De Bruyne, Müller, Lewandowski etc.
Said this a while ago, but I think, all things considered, Neymar is probably worth the most money, Messi aside perhaps. When considering his significant current ability, coupled with him being the face of Brazilian football, and then add that to the fact that he's the youngest 'great footballer' in the world - other than Messi, who isn't that old himself - he's the only player I'd say was worth a £150m+ investment. His marketability is enormous for a start, I believe he was making £20m a year before he even left Brazil when considering sponsors.
If Rooney were for sale the bids would start in the 20s of millions, and probably end there too. No way is he worth £60m, and in terms of goals, we wouldn't need that much to replace 18-odd league goals either.
Messi is about 100 million. Ronaldo about 80 million. The rest are all under 70 million imo.
This is a confusing list. Are you listing the top ten most valuable attacking players or simply the top ten attacking players in world football? You have the five players below Ronaldo priced higher for example, as well as Aguero priced higher, but below Bale and Suarez.
Personally I'd have Cavani nowhere near either list. Off the top of my head, Muller, James, Isco, Lewandowski, Reus, Benzema and Costa should command just as high a fee and all our undoubtably superior. Then you have Robben and Zlatan who are better player, but won't go for as much due to their age.
On topic, I doubt we will sign a marquee, high-profile forward this season, but I would strongly expect it next season. Bale would be the obvious candidate, although I could see the chances of Muller joining enhancing. We don't stand a chance for either this window however.
Personally I'd have Cavani nowhere near either list. Off the top of my head, Muller, James, Isco, Lewandowski, Reus, Benzema and Costa should command just as high a fee and all our undoubtably superior. Then you have Robben and Zlatan who are better player, but won't go for as much due to their age.
On topic, I doubt we will sign a marquee, high-profile forward this season, but I would strongly expect it next season. Bale would be the obvious candidate, although I could see the chances of Muller joining enhancing. We don't stand a chance for either this window however.
Sanchez is a £50m player and Hazard is a £60m player.
Messi is easily worth around £150m. There's no other player in the world who could have anywhere near the same impact on the side he plays for.
Who do you think would pay 150 million gbp for a player though? I mean there's newspaper talk about Psg, City, Madrid, Barca, even United putting in 100 million plus bids for certain players. I dont honestly think a club would fork out that much. Does the signings contribution as a player and commercial asset come even close to justifying the price? Then again City did bid 108million for Kaka in 2009 didn't they.
To be completely honest if it was said that he's available for £150m then I'd definitely expect us to lodge a bid. I mean, Kane is being talked about as a £50m player and we're apparently prepared to pay £100m for Bale.
Aguero isn't worth anywhere near £120m given how much time he spends out injured.
Messi could easily play until he's 35-36. He's got it all - creativity, dribbling, finishing. He'll just adapt his game as he gets older.
Ronaldinho became disinterested, put on weight a lot, much alike other Brazilians over the years. Messi is a phenomenon and doesn't seem to slow down one bit. He's also a lot more focused than Ronaldinho.
Rooney for 60m? At the current time you would be lucky to get the 30 million that was branded about 2 years ago when the Chelsea saga was going on. Hes nearly 30 and nowhere near the top.
It remains to be seen how Messi ages, there were a lot of stories about his diet/fitness regime prior to last year when he apparently changed it.
Now thats a big risk buying a player for that money when nobody knows if he can play in the PL, on his first year the refs would protect him but then after that he would be a target, I think he's a perfect player for the Spanish league and for Argentina of the 90's.
As soon as Messi loses some of his insane acceleration on the first 5 to 10 metres, he will decline noticeably. Not that he'll be bad, but this is the single greatest of his abilities: Controlling the ball tightly while just being 3times faster than those around him over short distances. That gets him into the positions to work his magic. Without that, he'd still be great, but not incredible.
Probably right. I still think that he can be the best No.10 in the world even without his acceleration/speend. A Messi in decline playing as No.10 would be a far better version of David Silva in his prime who is/was a fantastic player.
He's too busy scoring. I definitely wouldn't rule out Messi being the kind of elite safety valve and creator in the middle that Zidane, Xavi and Pirlo were.
The problem might be his workrate, especially on the defensive end. Zidane in his pomp, to return to this ridiculous comparison, could conduct a match like nobody else, seemingly being everywhere at the same time, always involved, never drifting out. I just don't see this particular quality in Messi. He is the ultimate star player and can decide games with flashes of brilliance alone, but a great Nr.10, especially once the body starts to lose his edge a little, has to have this spark that makes his team around him better as well.
Exactly, getting a pure attacker to suddenly be a midfielder is a tall order, let alone one at Zidanes level.