Is Messi the greatest player ever?

Azzurri · July 13, 2014

It is ridiculous that he's won the Golden Ball, though.

Azzurri · July 13, 2014

So ridiculous I posted it three times.

Crying and shaking.

davek · July 13, 2014

Azzurri said:
Pele had Jarzinho, Alberto, Rivelino etc. around him compared to Dimichelis, Higuain and Lavezzi.

Messi has won a Champions' League and Maradona hasn't.

Unfair to judge a player on what's basically two tournaments.

Maradona had worse around him than Messi's team mates. If you're a true football God you get the job done and lead from the front. messi shrank away from this WC after the QF stage.

davek · July 13, 2014

nigelcoyb said:
Anyone thinking Messi is the best ever probably never saw Maradona, Cruyff, Best, Pele, Zidane, Rivelino. I'd put the proper Ronaldo (Brazil) and Zico (Brazil) ahead of him. He's a great player but I think people fall into the trap of he's the best they've seen ergo he's the best of all time, just doesn't work that way.

Nail on head.

Messi is a great player. No question. That's different than saying he's an all time great though. He's the player of his generation. Full stop.

SimonB · July 13, 2014

One of the most talented players ever imo, however, he didn't produce on the biggest stage. So he's one step behind Pele and Maradona.

Azzurri · July 13, 2014

davek said:
Nail on head.

Messi is a great player. No question. That's different than saying he's an all time great though. He's the player of his generation. Full stop.

Which surely makes him one of the all time greats by default?

Diogenes the Cynic · July 13, 2014

Hope all the Messi fanboys are back in their box now.

Nowhere near Maradona's level.

Jamo Martinez · July 13, 2014

[QUOTE="davek, post: 2850060, member: 1745"]Maradona had worse around him than Messi's team mates. If you're a true football God you get the job done and lead from the front. messi shrank away from this WC after the QF stage.[/QUOTE]
Err, no he didn't. They just weren't as hyped as today's players.

davek · July 13, 2014

Azzurri said:
Which surely makes him one of the all time greats by default?

No. It makes him an unfulfilled player. Best of his generation, but without the ultimate success that any player from the past needs to have to be considered as an indisputable great who transcend their own generation.

Azzurri · July 13, 2014

davek said:
No. It makes him an unfulfilled player. Best of his generation, but without the ultimate success that any player from the past needs to have to be considered as an indisputable great who transcend their own generation.

Who are the all time greats then?

Walken · July 13, 2014

Looks like he's lost his edge big time, walking when losing the ball, narked look all the time

davek · July 14, 2014

Azzurri said:
Who are the all time greats then?

Pele, Maradona, closely followed by Zidane. Messi could be filed alongside Cruyff as a very, very special talent that didn't quite cap it all off by pulling their country to the ultimate prize in football.

davek · July 14, 2014

Jamo Martinez said:
davek said:

Maradona had worse around him than Messi's team mates. If you're a true football God you get the job done and lead from the front. messi shrank away from this WC after the QF stage.

Click to expand...

Err, no he didn't. They just weren't as hyped as today's players.

Debatable. What isn't debatable though is that whereas Maradona rose to the occasion and grabbed his chance at immortality Messi flinched and was found out in the same circumstances.

Steve0 · July 14, 2014

davek said:
Pele, Maradona, closely followed by Zidane. Messi could be filed alongside Cruyff as a very, very special talent that didn't quite cap it all off by pulling their country to the ultimate prize in football.

He's probably got two more World Cups.

He's better than Maradona imo. Even today he was the only player who produced moments of magic, a couple of his runs were breath taking and were beyond the ability of 99% of the players at that World Cup. They're just so common place with Messi that they hardly even register. In fact they make such little impact people claim he flopped. Anyone else played the way he did and they'd have been lauded (including barkley for everton), instead we get Schweinsteiger getting the plaudits for running about a bit.