World Cup: Can Lionel Messi Finally Win The Big One?
Lionel Messi is far and away one the best footballers of all time. His exploits with FC Barcelona are the stuff of legend and his level of play for his club will likely never be matched by anyone. He grew up in the Barcelona system, honing his talents at La Masia for years, and then burst on to the scene at a young age. Despite being from Argentina, he is every bit the homegrown talent that Xavi and Andres Iniesta are. What separates him from his Spanish teammates however, is the fac t that a nation’s hopes for a World Cup rest solely on his shoulders.
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Iniesta and Xavi never had the looming shadow of a deity of international football hanging over their head like Diego Maradona and Messi. They never had a whole nation dismiss everything they did in a Barcelona shirt because they could not deliver at the international level. The level of scorn and criticism Messi has had to deal with feels unprecedented. No other player has ever been so cruelly dismissed after achieving so much for his club by his home nation. That is why the little magician has no choice but to defeat Germany in the World Cup Final.
In what is undoubtedly his finest performance in a major tournament for his nation, Messi has carried his team to the World Cup Final in the most hostile of territories. He has not done so in the fashion or flair of Maradona but he has delivered winning goals and assists to his less than stellar supporting cast.
He has done what he has been destined to do since he became a legend at the Nou Camp. He has taken Argentina to the precipice of the promised land and if he can take them one step further, he will cement his place as one of the greatest of all-time. He will find his place among legends of the game like Pele and more importantly, Maradona. Maradona may be a god in the eyes of the Argentines, but if Messi lifts the World Cup trophy, then he will become the next best thing in the eyes of that football-mad nation.
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