Lionel Messi, the man knows no limits. He currently sits on 55 goals for the season in all competitions, including 12 Champions League goals in just 7 appearances. And the little Argentinian is now Barcelona’s all time record goal scorer at the grand old age of 24. And all this from someone who isn’t even an out and out striker, just an attacking midfielder. So, is Messi the greatest of all time? And if not, who is?
Messi’s personal achievements have been nothing short of phenomenal. For someone so young to have multiple La Liga medals, multiple Champions League medals, 3 Ballon d’Or’s and an Olympic gold medal is truly impressive. But it’s not just his success that endears him to us, it’s the way he plays the game. Skilful, spectacular, clever, attack minded, honest and extremely hard working. What’s not to like? How could anyone possibly be better?
But forget the greatest of all time for a moment, is Messi even the greatest of this generation? I have no doubt that Real Madrid’s Christiano Ronaldo would have something to say about that.
Ronaldo’s cocky and brash brand of football may rub some people up the wrong way, but even his most fierce detractors can’t deny that the man has serious ability. Just this season Ronaldo has chipped in with 45 goals in 43 appearances and his Madrid side seem to be cruising to a La Liga title. And this is just to add to the Champions League and Premier League titles he has already won.
And when the debate about ‘who’s the best’ comes up Ronaldo will always have that trump card, Manchester United. Christiano has proved his worth in England AND Spain, two notoriously different leagues. Messi has impressed, but just in the colours of Barca. But one thing that eludes both of these great players is World Cup success. The same cannot be said of Diego Maradona and Pele.
In truth Messi is a fairly new name to this debate. Up until recently it was always a two horse race. Who’s the best player ever?
“It has to be Maradona or Pele, pick one”.
Like Messi and Ronaldo, Maradona and Pele were polar opposites off the pitch but extremely successful on it. Maradona: World Cup winner in 1986, Golden Boot winner in Argentina and Italy, FIFA’s player of the century. Pele: World Cup winner in 1958, 62 and 70, 9 Brazilian league titles, scorer of 1,238 professional goals.
However it could be argued that Maradona or Pele couldn’t possibly be the best, because even in their prime if you were to put them on a pitch with the likes of Ronaldo and Messi they simply couldn’t keep up.
Modern day training techniques are so advanced and our knowledge of nutrition and fitness is such that players from past generations couldn’t compete on a physical level with today’s stars. So who’s the best of all time can only be relative to the era that the player played in.
Maybe it’s about who dominated their particular era the most convincingly. That would surely put Mess right at (or near) the very top of the pile. 5 goals in one recent game in the Champions League first knock out round certainly indicates that he is as dominant a force as we have ever seen. Anyone who saw that performance against Leverkusen would find it hard to argue.
Everyone will have their favourite and everyone will have their reasons for choosing their favourite. You may lean towards George Best, Marco Van Basten, Zinedane Zidane, Romário, Eusébio, Johan Cruyff, the list is almost endless.
Of course we will never know who the greatest actually is. We will never see all of these players on the pitch at the same time. That’s the beauty of this debate, nobody can prove they are right so the discussion goes on and on. Who you think is the best may also come down to who you happened to see in their prime.
Watching old videos of a player will not compare to living through the career of a great. Your Grandad's generation may say that Bobby Charlton is the best, your Dad could say Maradona, and your little brother could say Christiano Ronaldo. And so the debate rages on.
There is no conclusive way of proving if Messi is the greatest of all time or not. It will always be open for debate, as seemingly every area of football always is. But even if you don’t consider Messi to be the best ever right now, please bear in mind that he’s only 24. He’s going to get a lot better yet, and he’s got years to try and win you over!