Messi

[Andy]

Messi is nowhere near as bad as Ronaldo and Drogba for general gamesmanship malarky.

[SEMTEX]

I must be watching a different team. I've barely seen Messi do any of the stuff people are on about. The odd occasion, aye, but not to warrant such full-blown slating.

 

People still go on about Maradona's "hand-of-god", but no fucker cares that Messi did the same thing when trying to steal the Spanish title a few years back. It's just selective blindness. I don't deny that he's beyond amazing on the ball, but it seems to blind people from his filthy cuntisms.

[Neil]

I must be watching a different team. I've barely seen Messi do any of the stuff people are on about. The odd occasion, aye, but not to warrant such full-blown slating.

 

People still go on about Maradona's "hand-of-god", but no fucker cares that Messi did the same thing when trying to steal the Spanish title a few years back. It's just selective blindness. I don't deny that he's beyond amazing on the ball, but it seems to blind people from his filthy cuntisms.

 

Plural? I agree what he did against Espanyol (I think?) was absolutely wrong, but I just don't see this constant streak of behaviour in him. I'm open to being proved wrong on that count.

[Luc]

A question for anyone who watches him alot:

 

How will Messi adapt his game once he hits his late 20's-ish?

 

He doesn't. He just quits when he's 25.

[LooneyToonArmy]

who needs messi we got shola

[tmonkey]

Barcelona do, as they don't have Shola.

[hakka]

Messi is something special.  Takes it all up to another level, excited to watch him play.  Will make the World Cup interesting I think, surely he is good enough to carry Argentina?

[Shak]

Been on holiday in Morocco these last 10 days, not seen any football at all with the exception of both Arsenal-Barca games. (Typical that when we actually win something I fucking miss it )

 

Had to find some dodgy looking Moroccan bars to watch both games, honestly if Messi hadn't been involved there's no way I'd have gone to the bother.

 

He's just a very special player and one that I feel honoured that I get to watch every week, comfortably the best I've ever seen and barring serious injury there's just no way that he won't be viewed as being on the level of Pele and Maradona by the time he's finished.

[Fugazi]

I must be watching a different team. I've barely seen Messi do any of the stuff people are on about. The odd occasion, aye, but not to warrant such full-blown slating.

 

People still go on about Maradona's "hand-of-god", but no fucker cares that Messi did the same thing when trying to steal the Spanish title a few years back. It's just selective blindness. I don't deny that he's beyond amazing on the ball, but it seems to blind people from his filthy cuntisms.

 

The fact that Maradona's was in the quarter-finals of the World Cup, and against England, means it will always be talked about, moreso than Messi's.

[Guest Stephen927]

A question for anyone who watches him alot:

 

How will Messi adapt his game once he hits his late 20's-ish?

 

He doesn't. He just quits when he's 25.

 

It isn't as though he purely relies on pace like a Lennon or a Walcott. He'll still be quality when he hits 30 providing injuries don't stunt his career.

[Guest Heneage]

You never really see him use pace as a key asset, it's the sheer speed of his dribbling and movement that get him into those situations.

[Guest Phil K]

I have been in hysterics over the football media moaning and cumming in their pants over the bloke.

Great player as he is, but hell....cumfest or what ? paticularly that fat scouse w*nker on Talk Spurt.

 

Reminds me of when we beat Dynamo Kiev, and thought it a great achievement as they were a great side.

Sneering from the rags.

The following season when Dynamo Kiev took Arsenal apart at a similar stage, the same team, same players were "Probably the best team in the world"

Just sums up the media, for me whenever Arsenal, Man U or Liverpuddle are involved.

[Mr. Snrub]

I can't fucking stand that little bastard. Yeah he's a fantastic player but an annoying, cheating, diving bastard nonetheless. How about some fucking dignity and respect for the game? He's the kind of player to applaud a referee for sending off an opponent who didn't touch him. The thing with Messi is that all people who hate CRonaldo for his antics have no problems whatsoever with Messi for exactly the same stuff.

 

Goes for the whole Barca team really. Lost track of the number of times in their games when one of them falls over clutching the ball, and the ref falls for it every single time. It's sickening tbh. It's almost like they have a godgiven right to play football exactly how they want it. If it gets a bit tough there's always some wanker ref there to help them.

 

I'll probably get slated for this, but for everything that's good about Barca there are a couple of things that are absolutely infuriating as well. Don't get me wrong, when they're on their game, they are absolutely excellent, but it's the little sly digs and falling over that does me in. They're good enough without having to con the ref and at the same time the general public IMO.

 

He's not a diver.

 

Alves, Busquets - yes, Messi - no.  If you watch Barcelona regularly you will know he gets kicked up and down the pitch basically every match and most of the time will try and stay on his feet.

 

Even on that one occasion last night when people were calling him a diver, it wasn't a dive.  It was a fair tackle that made Messi fall to the ground and the ref gave a free kick.  It was a bad decision from the referee, not a dive.

[Taylor Swift]

I'm a massive fanboy so I may be biased in saying this, but I can't recall a blatant Messi dive. I also think that he tries his hardest to stay on his feet when he's tackled, which is why you always see those mazy dribbles where he's bouncing off 3 or 4 players. If he was Ronaldo, he would have been on the ground after the first tackle, foul or not.

 

Some of the other players in his team are admittedly quite quick to fall to the ground - Busquets, Bojan and Pedro were egregiously going down at the slightest of touches - but like I said, this doesn't apply to Messi.

[MW]

I can't fucking stand that little bastard. Yeah he's a fantastic player but an annoying, cheating, diving bastard nonetheless. How about some fucking dignity and respect for the game? He's the kind of player to applaud a referee for sending off an opponent who didn't touch him. The thing with Messi is that all people who hate CRonaldo for his antics have no problems whatsoever with Messi for exactly the same stuff.

 

Goes for the whole Barca team really. Lost track of the number of times in their games when one of them falls over clutching the ball, and the ref falls for it every single time. It's sickening tbh. It's almost like they have a godgiven right to play football exactly how they want it. If it gets a bit tough there's always some wanker ref there to help them.

 

I'll probably get slated for this, but for everything that's good about Barca there are a couple of things that are absolutely infuriating as well. Don't get me wrong, when they're on their game, they are absolutely excellent, but it's the little sly digs and falling over that does me in. They're good enough without having to con the ref and at the same time the general public IMO.

 

He's not a diver.

 

Alves, Busquets - yes, Messi - no.  If you watch Barcelona regularly you will know he gets kicked up and down the pitch basically every match and most of the time will try and stay on his feet.

 

Even on that one occasion last night when people were calling him a diver, it wasn't a dive.  It was a fair tackle that made Messi fall to the ground and the ref gave a free kick.  It was a bad decision from the referee, not a dive.

 

If we're talking about the one that got Denilson booked, it appeared to me he had a sneeky look at the ref whilst rolling around.

[Guest Howaythetoon]

He's a great player and up there as one of the best in the last 10 years or so in terms of sheer ability and indeed what he has achieved already but as good as he is he doesn't quite dominate a game or opposition on as consistent a basis in say the same way Zinidine Zidane did or even Ronaldhino did when he was in his prime. Perhaps that's down to his role in the Barcelona team, physicality and position on the pitch? He's a special player though and a delight to watch. I still say Rooney is a more complete player mind. At the moment we have some fantastic forwards around, Messi, Ronaldo, Rooney, Drogba, Torres, Shola...

[AliGupter]

He's a great player and up there as one of the best in the last 10 years or so in terms of sheer ability and indeed what he has achieved already but as good as he is he doesn't quite dominate a game or opposition on as consistent a basis in say the same way Zinidine Zidane did or even Ronaldhino did when he was in his prime. Perhaps that's down to his role in the Barcelona team, physicality and position on the pitch? He's a special player though and a delight to watch. I still say Rooney is a more complete player mind. At the moment we have some fantastic forwards around, Messi, Ronaldo, Rooney, Drogba, Torres, Shola...

 

I'm not sure what more you can do to dominate a game than scoring 4 in a Champions League 1/4 final.

[Mr. Snrub]

Aswell as scoring back to back hat-tricks in La Liga a few weeks ago.

 

He's been anonymous this season!

[LesPaul]

Rooney, Drogba and Torress  can't hold a candle to Messi

[Guest Phil K]

"He's MUCH better than Pele and better than Maradonna"

Mike Parry, scouse tit, on Talk Spurt this morning.

When he does it in the World Cup maybe he'll have a claim.

At the moment, he's no doubt best in europe.

[Tooj]

He's a great player and up there as one of the best in the last 10 years or so in terms of sheer ability and indeed what he has achieved already but as good as he is he doesn't quite dominate a game or opposition on as consistent a basis in say the same way Zinidine Zidane did or even Ronaldhino did when he was in his prime. Perhaps that's down to his role in the Barcelona team, physicality and position on the pitch? He's a special player though and a delight to watch. I still say Rooney is a more complete player mind. At the moment we have some fantastic forwards around, Messi, Ronaldo, Rooney, Drogba, Torres, Shola...

 

I'd rather have Messi every time though.

[Tooj]

A question for anyone who watches him alot:

 

How will Messi adapt his game once he hits his late 20's-ish?

 

Probably play a bit deeper and link up the play. Hope he keeps up the desire he has at the moment as that is what will make him even greater.

[Tooj]

Very different eras of football so to say he's the "best ever" is hard but to say he's in the same class wouldn't be a stretch.  There are players that come around every once and a while and are of a different class - ones like Pele, Maradona, Zidane, etc - and I think you can safely put Messi in that category at the moment.  If he wins the WC then he will definitely stay there too.

 

I wouldn't place Zidane up there with Pele and Maradona.

[Tooj]

He's certainly the best I've seen in my lifetime.

 

Still Ronaldo for me.

[cp40]

comparisons across decades difficult.

but when you watch close ups of the Likes of Maradona, pele, cruyf,  playing in world cups- they were brilliant on pitches that were like farmers fields.