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Lionel Andrés Messi (Spanish pronunciation: [ljoˈnel anˈdɾes ˈmesi], born 24 June 1987) is an Argentine footballer who plays for La Liga club FC Barcelona and is the captain of the Argentina national team, playing mainly as a forward. He is Barcelona's all-time top scorer in all official club competitions, excluding friendlies.[2] By the age of 21, Messi had received Ballon d'Or andFIFA World Player of the Year nominations. The following year in 2009 he won the Ballon d'Or[3] and FIFA World Player of the Year, and the inaugural FIFA Ballon d'Or in 2010 and 2011.[4]He also won the 2010–11 UEFA Best Player in Europe Award.
Messi is the fourth football player to win three Ballons d'Or, and the second player to win three consecutive Ballons d'Or. Messi has won five La Ligas, two Copas del Rey, five Supercopas de España, three Champions Leagues, two Super Cups and two Club World Cups. In 2012, Messi made UEFA Champions League history by becoming the first player to score five goals in one match.[5] He also matched José Altafini's record of 14 goals in a single Champions League season.[6] He also became the first player to top-score in four successive Champions League campaigns.[7][8] He set the world record for most goals scored in a season during the 2011–12 season, with 73 goals.[9] In the same season, he set the current goalscoring record in a single La Liga season, scoring 50 goals.[10]
Messi was the top scorer of the 2005 FIFA World Youth Championship with six goals. In 2006, he became the youngest Argentine to play in the FIFA World Cup and he won a runners-up medal at the Copa América tournament the following year, in which he was elected young player of the tournament.[11] In 2008, he won his first international honour, an Olympic gold medal, with the Argentina Olympic football team. Sportspro has rated Lionel Messi as the third most marketable athlete in the world.[12] His playing style and stature have drawn comparisons toDiego Maradona, who himself declared Messi as his "successor".[13][14][15][16][17]
2008–09 season
Upon Ronaldinho's departure from the club, Messi inherited his number 10 jersey.[63] During this season he placed second in the 2008 FIFA World Player of the Year awards with 678 points and third in the 2008 IFFHS World's Best Playmaker Award for the second consecutive year.[64]Messi scored his first hat-trick of 2009 in a Copa del Rey tie against Atlético Madrid which Barcelona won 3–1.[65] Messi scored another important double on 1 February 2009, coming on as a second half substitute to help Barcelona defeat Racing Santander 1–2 after being 1–0 down. The second of the two strikes was Barcelona's 5000th league goal.[66] On 8 April 2009, he scored twice against Bayern Munich in the Champions League, setting a personal record of eight goals in the competition.[67]
As Barcelona's season was drawing to a close, Messi scored twice (his 35th and 36th goals in all competitions) to cap a 6–2 win over Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabéu[68] in what was Real's heaviest defeat since 1930.[69] He won his first Copa del Rey on 13 May, scoring one goal and assisting another two, in a 4–1 victory over Athletic Bilbao.[70] He helped his team win the double by winning La Liga. On 27 May he helped Barcelona win the Champions League by scoring a second goal in the 70th minute giving Barcelona a two goal lead; he also became the top scorer in the Champions League, the youngest in the tournament's history, with nine goals.[71] Messi also won the UEFA Club Forward of the Year: and the UEFA Club Footballer of the Yearrounding off a spectacular year in Europe.[72] This victory meant Barcelona had won the Copa del Rey, La Liga and Champions League in the one season,[73] and was the first time a Spanish club had ever won the treble.[74] Messi finished the season with 38 goals and 18 assists in all competitions.
2009–10 season
After winning the 2009 UEFA Super Cup, Barcelona manager Pep Guardiola asserted that Messi was probably the best player he had ever seen.[76] This would also be the season in which Guardiola would first move Messi from the position of right winger into his now iconic "false-9" role in the centre of the front line at Barcelona.[77] On 18 September, Messi signed a new contract with Barcelona, running until 2016 and with a buy-out clause of €250 million included, making Messi, then along with Zlatan Ibrahimović, the highest paid players in La Liga, with earnings of around €9.5 million yearly.[78][79]
Messi was named winner of the 2009 Ballon d'Or on 1 December 2009, beating runner-up Cristiano Ronaldo by largest ever margin of 473 to 233.[80][81][82] He also placed 2nd in the 2009 IFFHS World's Best Playmaker Award.[83] behind team mate Xavi Hernández.On 19 December, Messi scored the winner in the final of the 2009 Club World Cup against Estudiantes in Abu Dhabi, giving the club their sixth title of the year.[84] Two days later, he was given the FIFA World Player of the Year award,[85] beating Cristiano Ronaldo, Xavi, Kaká and Andrés Iniesta to the award. This was the first time he had won the award, and he became the first Argentinian to ever receive this honour.[86] On 10 January 2010, Messi scored his first hat-trick in 2010 and his first hat-trick of the season against CD Tenerife in the 0–5 victory,[87] and on 17 January he scored his 100th goal for the club in the 4–0 victory over Sevilla FC.[88]
Messi scored a hat-trick against Valencia CF in a 3–0 home win,[89] and finally he scored another hat-trick against Real Zaragoza in a 4–2 away win,[90] becoming the first Barcelona player to score back-to-back hat-tricks in La Liga.[91] He played his 200th official match for Barcelona against CA Osasuna on 24 March 2010.[92On 6 April 2010, for the first time in Messi's career he scored four goals in a single match, netting the lot in a 4–1 home win over Arsenal in the Champions League quarter-final second leg.[95][96] This also saw him overtake Rivaldoas Barcelona's all time greatest scorer in the competition.[97] In the final league match of the season against Valladolid, he scored two goals in the second half to tie Ronaldo's club record of 34 goals in a single league season, set in 1996–97,[98][99] and to finish four goals behind the all-time record held by Telmo Zarra.[100] He was named La Liga player of the year for the second year in a row on 3 June 2010.[101] He finished the season with 47 goals in all competitions, tying Ronaldo's record from the 1996-97 season, and he provided 11 assists.[102]]
2010–11 season
On 21 August 2010, Messi scored a hat-trick in his first start of the season in a 4–0 victory over Sevilla FC in the Supercopa de España, helping Barcelona secure their first trophy of the season after a 1–3 first leg loss.[103]
On 19 September 2010, Messi suffered an ankle injury due to an ill-advised tackle by Atlético Madrid defender Tomáš Ujfaluši in the 92nd minute of their Round 3 match at the Vicente Calderón Stadium. At first sight it was feared that Messi suffered a broken ankle that could have kept the star player away from the pitch for a minimum of six months, but MRI performed the next day in Barcelona showed he suffered a sprain in the internal and external ligaments of his right ankle.[104] Team-mate David Villa stated "the tackle on Messi was brutal" after watching the video of the play and also added that he believed the Atlético defender "didn't go into the tackle to hurt".[105] The incident caused widespread media attention and brought up the debate of equality in protecting all players in the game.
Against Almería Messi scored his second hat-trick of the season in an impressive 8–0 away win, the second of which was his 100th La Liga goal.[106]Messi won the 2010 FIFA Ballon d'Or, beating his Barcelona teammates Xavi and Iniesta.[107] Messi had been nominated for the awards for the fourth consecutive year.[108] On 5 February, Barcelona broke the record for most consecutive league wins with 16 victories after they defeated Atlético Madrid 3–0 at the Camp Nou.[109] Lionel Messi scored a hat-trick to ensure the victory for his side and after the match he stated, "it's an honor to be able to pass a record set by a great like Di Stéfano" and "if the record has been around for so long is because it's very complicated to achieve and we have reached it by defeating a very difficult team who's going through a bad situation, which makes it even more difficult."[110]
After failing to score for a month he scored a brace against UD Almería; the second goal was his 47th of the season, equalling his club record return of the previous season.[111] He surpassed his record on 12 April 2011 by scoring the winner against Shakhtar Donetsk in a UEFA Champions League game, which put him in the record book as all time top scorer in a single season for Barcelona.[112] He scored his eighth goal on El Clásico on a 1–1 tie at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium. On 23 April, Messi scored his 50th goal of the season against CA Osasuna in a 2–0 home victory which he came on as a substitute in the 60th minute.[113] He finished the season by winning La Liga and scoring 31 goals as he finished runner-up in the Pichichi trophy toCristiano Ronaldo, who had managed to score 40. Messi finished the league season as the top assist provider with 18 assists.
On 20 April, Barcelona were defeated by arch-rivals Real Madrid in the 2011 Copa del Rey Final. Messi set up a goal for Pedro, which was however ruled offside. Cristiano Ronaldo scored the only goal of the match in extra time. Messi was however the joint top-scorer of the tournament along with Cristiano Ronaldo, with 7 goals.[114][115][115]
In the first leg of the Champions League semi-finals, he gave a memorable performance, scoring twice against Real Madrid in a 2–0 win, the second goal (a dribble past several players) being acclaimed as one of the best ever at that stage of the competition.[116][117] At the Champions League Final at Wembley, Messi scored the eventual game-clinching goal to give Barcelona their third title in six years and fourth overall.[118]This was also Messi's 12th goal in the Champions League that season, which allowed him to tie Ruud Van Nistelrooy's record of 12 goals in a single European Cup season, after it was re-established as the UEFA Champions League, in 1992.[115] The overall record of goals scored in a single European Cup Season, is José Altafini's record of 14 goals, which Messi did however equal in the following season.[115] Messi finished the 2010-11 season with 53 goals and 24 assists in all competitions combined.
2011–12 season
Messi started the season by lifting the Spanish Supercup with Barcelona, scoring three goals and providing two assists in a 5–4 aggregate win against Real Madrid.[119] His vital interventions continued in the next official match played against Porto when he scored again following a weak back pass from Fredy Guarín before setting up Cesc Fàbregas to give Barcelona a 2–0 victory and the UEFA Super Cup,[120] then the only official competition that remained for him to score in.[121]
After scoring his first goal of an eventual hat-trick in an 8–0 rout against CA Osasuna, Messi produced a special celebration for Soufian, a 10-year-old Moroccan boy with Laurin Sandrow syndrome, a rare medical condition that can eventually lead to the loss of the lower extremities. Whilst Messi usually points to the sky after scoring a goal, Messi slapped his thighs as a dedication to Soufian.[122]
In August, Messi became the second highest goalscorer surpassing László Kubala on 194 goals, being behind only to César Rodríguez on 232 goals in all official competitions.[123]
On 28 September, Messi scored his first two Champions League goals of the season against BATE Borisov,[124] becoming Barcelona's second highest goalscorer in its history, tying László Kubala, at 194 goals in all official competitions.[125] He surpassed that record when he scored two goals against Racing Santander.[126] He became second in Barcelona's La Liga goalscorers list with 132 goals, one more than Kubala.[127] He scored his 200th Barcelona goal and two more as part of a hat-trick in his next game against Viktoria Plzeň in the Champions League.[128]
Messi scored a brace in the Club World Cup Final against Santos FC and was recognized as the man of the match and also awarded the Golden Ball for his performance during the tournament.[129]Messi won the 2011 UEFA Best Player in Europe Award, beating his FC Barcelona team-mate Xavi Hernández and Real Madrid's Cristiano Ronaldo. Messi won the 2011 FIFA Ballon d'Or, again beating his team-mate Xavi and Cristiano Ronaldo. By winning the FIFA Ballon d'Or again, Messi become the fourth player to win three Ballon d'Ors, after Johan Cruyff, Michel Platini and Marco Van Basten and the second player to win three consecutive Ballon d'Ors, after Michel Platini (although two of his Ballon d'Ors are FIFA Ballon d'Ors, which he won consecutively). Messi also won the IFFHS World's Top Goal Scorer award, with 19 goals in 2011.[130]
On 19 February 2012, Messi, on his 200th La Liga appearance, scored four goals against Valencia CF in a 5–1 win.[131] On 7 March, Messi became the first player to score five goals in an UEFA Champions League match since the tournament's re-establishment in 1992, helping the defending champions Barcelona win 7–1 against Bayer Leverkusen.[132]
On 20 March, Messi scored three goals against Granada CF, making him FC Barcelona's leading goalscorer in official competitions, surpassing club legend César Rodríguez, who had previously held the record with 232.[133]
On 3 April, Messi scored two goals from penalty kicks against Milan in the second leg of the Champions League Quarter-final, allowing him to surpass his personal record, joint with Ruud van Nistelrooy, of 12 goals in a single UEFA Champions League season. These goals allowed him to tie José Altafini's record of 14 goals in a single European Cup season in the 1962–63 season, before the tournament's re-establishment as the UEFA Champions League in 1992.[115] Messi was unable to score in the semifinals, although he provided an assist in the second leg, as Barcelona were knocked out to eventual winners Chelsea. During the second leg match, Messi missed an important penalty, hitting the crossbar. The goal would have put Barcelona ahead on aggregate.[134]
On 11 April, Messi scored his 61st goal of the season against Getafe CF, and made two assists.[135] On 2 May, Messi scored a hat-trick against Málaga CF surpassing Gerd Müller's record (67 goals in 1972-73) with 68 goals, and thus becoming the best goalscorer in history in one season in Europe.[136] It was the 21st multi-goal game of the season for Messi and his seventh La Liga hat-trick.[137]He then scored four goals on 5 May against RCD Espanyol to take his tally to an unprecedented 72 goals, in the process becoming only the second player to pass 70 goals in a first division season since Archie Stark of Bethlehem Steel in the American Soccer League in 1924–25.[9]
On 25 May, he scored again in the 2012 Copa del Rey Final, helping Barcelona win their 26th Spanish Cup title, and increasing his seasonal goalscoring record to an unmatched 73 goals in all competitions.[138][139] This was also Guardiola's last match as Barcelona's manager, and the Cup win marked Messi's second Copa del Rey title, after losing the final the year before, as well as his 14th Barcelona trophy during Guardiola's four seasons at the club. Although Barcelona failed to win their 4th consecutive Liga title under Guardiola, finishing runners up to arch-rivals Real Madrid, Messi finished the 2011–12 season as the top goalscorer in La Liga for a second time, with a Liga record of 50 goals. He was the second best assist provider in La Liga that season with 16 assists, afterMesut Özil, who managed 17. He also ended the season as the UEFA Champions' League Top Scorer for a fourth consecutive time, with 14 goals.[138] He was one of the top assist providers of thetournament with 5 assists and finished the season with 73 goals and 29 assists in all club competitions, with more goals and assists than any other player.
2012–13 season
During Barcelona's first game of the season against Real Sociedad, Messi continued his goalscoring run with 2 goals in a 5-1 win at the Camp Nou. Messi added another goal from a penalty in a 3-2 win against rivals Real Madrid in the first leg of the 2012 Supercopa de España in Barcelona on 23 August.[140] He added another brace against Osasuna as Barcelona came from behind away from home to beat them 2-1.[141] Messi added another goal from a free kick in the second leg of the Supercopa de España, as Barcelona, down to ten men, were defeated by Real Madrid on away goals.[142] This marked his 15th goal in the Clasico Real Madrid-Barcelona derby, which made him Barcelona's top scorer in Clasico matches, putting him tied with Raúl, behind only Alfredo Di Stefano, with 18 goals.[143][144] Messi placed second along with Cristiano Ronaldo in the 2012 UEFA Best Player in Europe Award, with 17 votes each. The award was won by Messi's Barcelona team mate Andrés Iniesta.[145] In his third league appearance on 2 September against Valencia CF, Messi assisted the only goal of the match, by team mate Adriano, from a short corner.[146]Messi scored two more goals in a win against Getafe on 15 September[147] and added another brace in his first Champion's League match of the season against Spartak Moscow on 20 September, ending in a 3-2 win to Barcelona, also marking his tenth goal of the season.[148]
On 11 November, Messi scored twice at Real Mallorca, his 75th and 76th goal in 2012, passing Pelé's milestone of 75 goals in a calendar year, and moved within nine of Gerd Müller's all-time record.[149][150]
2006 World Cup
The injury that kept Messi from playing for two months at the end of the 2005–06 season jeopardised his presence in the 2006 World Cup. Nevertheless, Messi was selected in the Argentina squad for the tournament on 15 May 2006. He also played in the final match before the World Cup against the Argentine U-20 team for 15 minutes and a friendly match against Angola from the 64th minute.[168][169] He witnessed Argentina's opening match victory against Ivory Coast from the substitute's bench.[170] In the next match against Serbia and Montenegro, Messi became the youngest player to represent Argentina at a World Cup when he came on as a substitute for Maxi Rodríguez in the 74th minute. He assisted Hernán Crespo's goal within minutes of entering the game and also scored the final goal in the 6–0 victory, making him the youngest scorer in the tournament and the sixth youngest goalscorer in the history of theWorld Cup.[171] Messi started in Argentina's following 0–0 draw against the Netherlands.[172] In the following game against Mexico, Messi came on as a substitute in the 84th minute, with the score tied at 1–1. He appeared to score a goal, but it was ruled offside with Argentina needing a late goal in extra time to proceed.[173][174] Coach José Pekerman left Messi on the bench during the quarter-final match against Germany, which they lost 4–2 on a penalty shootout.[175]
2007 Copa América
Messi played his first game in the 2007 Copa América on 29 June 2007, when Argentina defeated United States 4–1 in the first game. In this game, he showed his capabilities as a playmaker. He set up a goal for fellow striker Hernán Crespo and had numerous shots on target. Tevez came on as a substitute for Messi in the 79th minute and scored minutes later.[176]
His second game was against Colombia, in which he won a penalty that Crespo converted to tie the game at 1–1. He also played a part in Argentina's second goal as he was fouled outside the box, which allowed Juan Roman Riquelme to score from a freekick, and increase Argentina's lead to 3–1. The final score of the game was 4–2 in Argentina's favor and guaranteed them a spot in the tournament's quarterfinals.[177]
In the third game, against Paraguay the coach rested Messi having already qualified for the quarter-finals. He came off the bench in place of Esteban Cambiasso in the 64th minute, with the score at 0–0. In the 79th minute, he assisted a goal for Javier Mascherano.[178] In the quarter-finals, as Argentina faced Peru, Messi scored the second goal of the game, from a Riquelme pass in a 4–0 win.[179] During the semi-final match against Mexico, Messi scored a lob over Oswaldo Sánchez to see Argentina through to the final with a 3–0 win.[180] Argentina went on to lose 3–0 to Brazil in the final.[181] Messi was elected young player of the tournament.[11]
2008 Summer Olympics
Having barred Messi from playing for Argentina in the 2008 Olympics,[182] Barcelona agreed to release him after he held talks with newly appointed coach Pep Guardiola.[183] He joined the Argentina squad and scored the first goal in a 2–1 victory over Ivory Coast.[183] He then scored the opening goal and assisted Ángel di María in the second to help his side to a 2–1 extra-time win against the Netherlands.[184] He also featured in Argentina's match against rivals Brazil, in which Argentina took a 3–0 victory, thus advancing to the final. In the gold medal match, Messi again assisted Di María for the only goal in a 1–0 victory over Nigeria.[185]
2010 World Cup
For the 2010 World Cup, Messi wore the number 10 shirt for the first time in a major tournament.[186] Messi played the entire game on Argentina's opening match in the 2010 World Cup, the 1–0 victory against Nigeria. He had several opportunities to score but was repeatedly denied by Vincent Enyeama.[187] Messi started in Argentina's following 4–1 win against Korea Republic; he played in more of an attacking midfielder and playmaking role under Maradona,[186][188][189][190] and participated in all of the goals of his team, helping Gonzalo Higuaín score a hat-trick.[191] On the third and last group stage match Messi captained during Argentina's 2–0 win over Greece, again being the centrepoint of Argentina's play and was voted man of the match.[192]
At the Round of 16 he assisted Carlos Tévez for the first goal in a 3–1 win against Mexico. The World Cup ended for Argentina with a 4–0 loss against Germany in the quarter-finals.[193]
Messi was nominated in ten player shortlist for Golden Ball award by FIFA Technical Study Group. The group identified Messi with words: "Outstanding in his pace and creativity for his team, dribbling, shooting, passing – spectacular and efficient".[194]
2011 Copa América
Messi took part in the Copa América in Argentina, where he failed to score a goal but notched three assists. He was selected man-of-the-match in matches against Bolivia (1–1) and Costa Rica(3–0). Argentina were eliminated in the quarter-finals in a penalty shoot-out against Uruguay (1–1 a.e.t.), with Messi scoring as the first penalty taker.
Style of play Messi has been compared to compatriot Diego Maradona, due to their similar playing style and stature,[195] which gives him a lower centre of gravity than most players, allowing him to be more agile and change direction more quickly, helping him to evade tackles.[196] His short, strong legs allow him to excel in short bursts of acceleration and his quick feet allow him to keep control of the ball when dribbling at speed.[197] His former FC Barcelona manager, Pep Guardiola, once stated: “Messi is the only player that runs faster with the ball than he does without it.”[198] Like Maradona before him, Messi is dominantly a left footed player.[199] With the outside of his left foot, he usually begins dribbling runs, whilst he uses the inside of his foot to finish and provide passes and assists to team mates.[196]
Messi often undertakes individual dribbling runs towards goal, in particular during counterattacks, usually starting from the halfway line, or the right side of the pitch, although he has also been described as a versatile team player, with good vision, known for his passing and his creative combinations, in particular with Barcelona team mates Xavi and Iniesta.[200][201][202] He is also an accurate set piece and penalty kick taker.[203] With regards to his dribbling ability, Maradona has said of Messi: "The ball stays glued to his foot; I’ve seen great players in my career, but I’ve never seen anyone with Messi's ball control."[204] Maradona has stated that he believes Messi to currently be the greatest player in the world.[205][206]
Tactically, Messi plays a free attacking and occasionally a playmaking role,[207] known for his finishing, pace, dribbling, balance, positioning, vision and passing ability.[201][208] He is comfortable attacking on either wing or through the centre of the pitch.[209] He began his career as a left-winger and forward, but was later moved onto the right wing by former manager Frank Rijkaard, who noticed that from this position, Messi could cut through the defence into the middle of the pitch more easily, allowing him to curl shots on goal with his left foot, rather than predominantly crossing balls for team mates.[207] He has more recently played in a false 9 role under Guardiola.[210] This role is characterized by Messi's tendency to seemingly be playing as a centre forward, or as a lone striker, although he will often run back into deep positions drawing defenders with him, creating space for wingers, other forwards, and attacking midfielders to make runs, allowing him to provide them with assists or giving him space to begin dribbling runs, score goals or create attacking plays.[210] With the Argentinian National team, Messi usually plays anywhere along the front line. He began as a forward or winger but has also played in a deeper role, in particular under Maradona, in more of an attacking midfield and playmaking role.[186][188][189][190] Messi revealed that he is a fan of the former Argentina playmakerPablo Aimar.[211]
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