Messi

[Shak]

They'll be fucking sickened if they get that organised and get treated to some of the more recent material.

[mrmojorisin75]

They'll be fucking sickened if they get that organised and get treated to some of the more recent material.

  right...imagine if they let Liam run riot on some of his own stuff too, fucking hell... 

 

songbird 

 

good luck carlitos and leo

[Fenham Mag]

Ah that would be a great scene , Maradonna streaking down the main street in Buenos Aires while they play champagne Supernova and Gutierrez gets his mask out 

[Nobody]

Ah that would be a great scene , Maradonna streaking down the main street in Buenos Aires while they play champagne Supernova and Gutierrez gets his mask out 

Worth losing the final to see that

[MW]

http://swns.com/village-club-chairman-suspended-after-lionel-messi-transfer-bid-101722.html

 

[ponsaelius]

If you want someone to build a team around, it's Rooney. But that doesn't make him a better player.

 

A year later, this is certainly no longer the case. Messi is becoming more and more the kind of player that can be built around.

[Guest ObiChrisKenobi]

It'd take some fantastically huge really bad seasons from now, at the age of 23, for him not to be considered one of the greatest players ever.

[Ronaldo]

If you want someone to build a team around, it's Rooney. But that doesn't make him a better player.

 

A year later, this is certainly no longer the case. Messi is becoming more and more the kind of player that can be built around.

 

Yep, and Rooney's looked every bit the flat track bully once again.

[leffe186]

http://swns.com/village-club-chairman-suspended-after-lionel-messi-transfer-bid-101722.html

 

 

Miserable bastards.

[Punk77]

If you want someone to build a team around, it's Rooney. But that doesn't make him a better player.

 

Agreed. Rooney is great, but remember that he also benefits from playing on a good team. He's strength is his finishing skills and work ethic. He benefits immensely from playing in Man U which plays a style of football that suits him perfectly: fast passing, a lot of mobility and diverting the play to the side which the opponent is outnumbered. All those factors give Rooney space to run in. And high quality crossers are constantly delivered from the wide men, which enables him to exploit his finishing capabilities. That's Rooney at his best. But the man has much more problems when the ball is not passed around quickly enough, when the defenders are able to close down the space. This happens at the national team and Rooney is  accordingly experiencing problems, like we saw in the WC.

 

 

[alpal78]

If you want someone to build a team around, it's Rooney. But that doesn't make him a better player.

 

Agreed. Rooney is great, but remember that he also benefits from playing on a good team. He's strength is his finishing skills and work ethic. He benefits immensely from playing in Man U which plays a style of football that suits him perfectly: fast passing, a lot of mobility and diverting the play to the side which the opponent is outnumbered. All those factors give Rooney space to run in. And high quality crossers are constantly delivered from the wide men, which enables him to exploit his finishing capabilities. That's Rooney at his best. But the man has much more problems when the ball is not passed around quickly enough, when the defenders are able to close down the space. This happens at the national team and Rooney is  accordingly experiencing problems, like we saw in the WC.

 

 

 

I can see some of the points you're making, but not sure why playing in a good team is a factor when comparing Rooney vs Messi. Barcelona is streets ahead of Man Utd as the better team. Messi is great but he's got players like Xavi and Iniesta behind him. Messi and Barcelona just feeds off each other which probably explain why he is a pale shadow of himself for Argentina.

[Frazzle]

Looking back through this thread at the 'Messi couldn't play in the Premier League' comments is mental.

 

The lad is probably one the strongest players pound for pound in the world.  Search on youtube for 'Messi never dive' if you want to see him ride some rough challenges.  If players like Nasri and Nani can be successful in the Premier League why wouldn't Messi?

 

Sorry to drag this argument up again but I'll never understand this argument against him.

[wormy]

Already Barca's all-time European goalscorer. Barring a ridiculous fall from grace in the next couple of years, also on course to smash the all-time goalscorer record. At 23 years old. Crazy.

[Tooj]

Rooney and Messi are on the same level imo - when it comes to passing the ball that is. I.e. they're both overhyped in this department.

 

I appreciate that both players are relatively young still and have time to mature in this area, but imo neither can weight a through ball as well or as consistently as a Zidane, Bergkamp, Totti, Beardo, etc. They're both obviously gifted players who can distribute the ball well and provide the odd good through ball, but the number of times they'll overhit a through ball when it's on has been pretty disappointing at times, in fact it's often stuck out like a sore thumb as an area of the game that they're lacking in.

 

Cristiano Ronaldo provides a bit of backing for this view imo, as he's also one of the best attacking players in the world and a great/legend in the making, but who has shown little ability or proficiency when it comes to threading fine balls to open up opposition defences. Clearly it's not something in his makeup, he's more about power and explosiveness than finesse. Hence, although Rooney and Messi may be better than him in this department, they're from the same school as him in that their real strengths lie in other areas of their respective games.

 

Some of Messi's assists this season have been breathtaking, especially that one to Villa away at Gíjon the other week. His passing and vision is certainly an area of his game that has improved massively. (I know your post was last year btw)

 

There's something not right when watching Rooney play as well, he's definitely lost some explosiveness and he certainly doesn't excite like he used to.

[Disco]

Rooney and Messi are on the same level imo - when it comes to passing the ball that is. I.e. they're both overhyped in this department.

 

I appreciate that both players are relatively young still and have time to mature in this area, but imo neither can weight a through ball as well or as consistently as a Zidane, Bergkamp, Totti, Beardo, etc. They're both obviously gifted players who can distribute the ball well and provide the odd good through ball, but the number of times they'll overhit a through ball when it's on has been pretty disappointing at times, in fact it's often stuck out like a sore thumb as an area of the game that they're lacking in.

 

Cristiano Ronaldo provides a bit of backing for this view imo, as he's also one of the best attacking players in the world and a great/legend in the making, but who has shown little ability or proficiency when it comes to threading fine balls to open up opposition defences. Clearly it's not something in his makeup, he's more about power and explosiveness than finesse. Hence, although Rooney and Messi may be better than him in this department, they're from the same school as him in that their real strengths lie in other areas of their respective games.

 

Some of Messi's assists this season have been breathtaking, especially that one to Villa away at Gíjon the other week. His passing and vision is certainly an area of his game that has improved massively. (I know your post was last year btw)

 

There's something not right when watching Rooney play as well, he's definitely lost some explosiveness and he certainly doesn't excite like he used to.

 

As with many English players he seems to have had his natural flair & his turn of the unexpected coached out of him in favour of working hard and holding his position.

[Neil]

Rooney and Messi are on the same level imo - when it comes to passing the ball that is. I.e. they're both overhyped in this department.

 

I appreciate that both players are relatively young still and have time to mature in this area, but imo neither can weight a through ball as well or as consistently as a Zidane, Bergkamp, Totti, Beardo, etc. They're both obviously gifted players who can distribute the ball well and provide the odd good through ball, but the number of times they'll overhit a through ball when it's on has been pretty disappointing at times, in fact it's often stuck out like a sore thumb as an area of the game that they're lacking in.

 

Cristiano Ronaldo provides a bit of backing for this view imo, as he's also one of the best attacking players in the world and a great/legend in the making, but who has shown little ability or proficiency when it comes to threading fine balls to open up opposition defences. Clearly it's not something in his makeup, he's more about power and explosiveness than finesse. Hence, although Rooney and Messi may be better than him in this department, they're from the same school as him in that their real strengths lie in other areas of their respective games.

 

Some of Messi's assists this season have been breathtaking, especially that one to Villa away at Gíjon the other week. His passing and vision is certainly an area of his game that has improved massively. (I know your post was last year btw)

 

There's something not right when watching Rooney play as well, he's definitely lost some explosiveness and he certainly doesn't excite like he used to.

 

As with many English players he seems to have had his natural flair & his turn of the unexpected coached out of him in favour of working hard and holding his position.

 

Yep. He's become a better, more all-round but less exciting player.

[Ronaldo]

Holding his position? He doesn't, ever.

[Disco]

Holding his position? He doesn't, ever.

 

He does when he gets shunted left in Europe.

[Guest Flatline]

http://swns.com/village-club-chairman-suspended-after-lionel-messi-transfer-bid-101722.html