Not really, i'm not a Barca/Messi fanboy. But he was playing pretty damn good. I guess it's his stigma that most people won't look beyond his scoring exploits to see the playmaking abilities he possesses.
You'd have to be blind to say he was playing bad, really. Not his fault people flunked the chances he created.
I agree with Higuain having 2 left foots,he shouldnt play football at all he is incompetent for this sport.When I remember how many clean shoots he missed in south africa and how pathetic he plays for realmadrid Im surprised he is actually still playing at all.. its funny how ppl like Mourinho and Maradonna that consider themselfs as football gods cant notice how ungifted Higuain is, so sad.
It's painful to watch, man. I can't think of another "top" level striker that is anywhere near as wasteful, he's definitely overrated, and it baffles me how in the world he's getting the nod of being Argentina's center forward ahead of Aguero or Messi.
Batista needs to draw conclusions from that. I think Mourinho already did, can't imagine a coach as good as him putting Higuain ahead of Benzema. Little wonder he's still looking for another forward.
problem is that imho many people think that he can carry team on his own, scoring hat-trick before the end of first half, constantly dirbbling through whole opponent team
but still, he is the best in the world
Yes, I saw him play and he played fantastic, but it's only possible because he's got half the spanish national team around.
Barca is built around Messi so he can play at his full potential. If you take that aspect away we're left with an extraordinary scorer in terms of assists but everything else seems impossible.
I also remember the 0:4 against Germany vividly where he was nowhere to be seen, 'cause Germany had a VERY dedicated defense line who just took him out of the equation.
Football is a team game remember?? Barca is the best team and it has the best player FOR that team...Messi is just the best for that style and Xavi and Iniesta are on same level as he is so if the opponents only try to guard messi he just pulls himself back a bit and then he helps Iniesta and Xavi with feeding balls to alves(this guy is such a beast of a player,too bad nobody notices that exept barca players and guardiola.) and Villa..
Barca is winning if you stop Messi or not..Argentina just sux nowadays..just like Brazil..
Agreed.
I just don't like how people see Messi as the messiah of football when he's just a wheel in a bigger machinery like Barca and he'll stop working if the machine's broken.
Hes not just a wheel hes a very important wheel..And it's the perfect wheel for that machine.He's the best on the planet no doubt but barca allows him to give his best every time. argentina is a totaly different machine so he just doesn't belong there..
Xavi and Iniesta are nowhere near the level of Messi. Nobody is.
Yes they can give some decent passes bla bla bla, Messi can do that AND he can run around 5 defenders AND he can score 50 goals a season. You won't see Xavi or Iniesta do that ever.
And no, obviously he can't win games by himself. Because football still requires teamwork which is far more advanced at Barcelona for the simple reason that they can afford to raise their own players in their own academy and have them playing with each on a daily basis other for years and years without ever having to sell or replace anyone.
Because football still requires teamwork which is far more advanced at Barcelona for the simple reason that they can afford to raise their own players in their own academy and have them playing with each on a daily basis other for years and years without ever having to sell or replace anyone.
Plus stop pretenidng like you know about footy, you're a gaming nerd with social issues who can't even afford the kit for the team he's talking about.
So don't give it large and pretend you're alex ferguson.
My local side is in the premier league, you'll be watching it (and me) on tv from the your parents spare room while I'll be breathing in the same air as some of the best in the world.
I get insight into things you don't get on your portable tele.
How about we simply analyze Messi's game? He's objective, he gets the ball and looks forward, runs past any defender(s) there is and if he's open then he takes the shot. If he's not then he looks to make a precise pass to his teammates. He does this better than anyone else. Not to mention he DESTROYS in the big games.
Messi can run past the defenders because when he gets the ball, he starts running, immediately putting the defender on the back pedal and always keeping the ball close to his feet, out of reach of the defender. I'm tired of seeing these other players get the ball, stand still, and try to outrun the defender. This is only possible if the defender is way much slower than you, which is rare these days.
I'm not sure in which aspect you think Messi is weak. Taking the credit out of him just because he has a good supporting cast to me is just a weak argument. If you've played soccer many times in your life then you should be able to make your opinion just by watching him play, not on other circumstances.
That's coz you can't win games by yourself anymore. Those days in football are looooong past gone. Any attempts either end in disappointment (Messi) or utter embarassment (Neymar). You need a cohesive unit to dominate opponents. Germany, Barcelona, Spain etc have that... teams like Argentina and Brazil are not really built, they're an amalgamation of random stars that sometimes click and sometimes don't. And when they encounter a less star-studded but more gelled team, they fall apart.
Of course, firing coaches every time they fail to live up to the hype doesn't help, either. Maybe at least Italy has learned from that.
I wasn't saying he should WIN games on his own though. He just lacks the leadership mentality that many of the greats have.
He will always be the little kid doin' his magic on the pitch.
We can see what happened to players like that. --> Ronaldinho