If we were, none of these two guys could hold a candle to fanerio.

I mean really.

I think Bojan scored 1000 in youth games

MY GOAT

vii

goat oat

I love Messi but got to feel for Lewa

Well if you remove the facts he's a good looking multi-millionaire with a (probable) hot wife

goa7 gonna goa7

eta:
ff obv shoulda made up for their mistake last year and hand out lewa the 2020 one retrospectively

What a legend zeestein was. Most arrogant poster of all time OAT?



Surely that best striker award is some sort of weak compromise after someone suggested to give Lewa the 2020 award now (or even some sort of 2020+2021 award). But oh no the oh so important French league was not played exactly as usual.

Concerning the 2021 award going to Messi, having seen his stats, it would take quite an eyetest to argue adamantly against.

he basically won it because they won cope america but he was incredibly good again this spring for barca. this barca team can barely even score goals now without him

it's always a question of how much you give it based on trophies won and how much is just being the best player, but if it was just the best player then messi should have 13 of them by now imo

With ~every metric showing Messi as the(ir) best player by a mile, we might add.

Everyone agrees this individual award should go to the best player. I think we can agree that the best player is the one who contributed most to win trophies.

Now many (wrongly) conclude that the best player has to have won the world cup/champions league. They are probably bad at poker.

ho hum, just another title for the undisputed goat oat


how's that fraud doing btw?

Congrats to Messi on becoming Saudi wife #20

I recant

GOAT

GOAT

GÖAT ÖAT of all time and it's not even ainec.

in for the GOATest of all OAT

The greatest athlete of all time

RITS

SHOW YA FACE

Yep it's over.

GOAT

lolnaldo won't even retire despite being dropped from both teams, GOAT just GOATs it up

Congrats to the GOAT

Can't wait to see impact sub Messi at WC 2026

For real though my personal experience was getting into soccer/football around 2005/06 and watching Messi at the Under 20 tournament in Canada and Olympics in 2008 was just incredible seeing him develop and go the whole way.

What a champion. I lost bulk cash because France lost the final and I'm only kinda mad

Remember when he used to be criticized for his poor goal scoring record with Argentina? Before 2012, Messi had already won 3 Ballon d'Ors, but his international goal scoring record stood at a rather pedestrian 19 goals in 67 caps. The critics and haters called him a Barcelona product, a system player who couldn't succeed without world class midfielders like Xavi and Iniesta. While Xavi and Iniesta are indeed two of the best midfielders of all-time, one thing became clear over the years: Messi was always the most important player, the one who made the decisive final ball or shot the most often. As Xavi and Iniesta left Barcelona to retire in lower leagues, Messi continued to win multiple league titles and lead La Liga in goals and assists every year no matter who he was playing with. Messi was the straw that stirred the Barcelona drink, he was the system.

Fast forward to 2022. Messi began the year with 80 goals for Argentina in 158 caps, both national records. He was reigning Copa America champion after leading that tournament in both goals and assists. He made this speech in the dressing room moments before the final with Brazil. Remember when they said he was not a leader? This is a leader who speaks quietly yet loudly, and leads by example.

And what does Messi do in 2022? Just score a ridiculous 18 goals for Argentina, bringing his tally to 98 goals in 172 caps. Along the way, he led Argentina to the World Cup, while looking like the best player of the tournament at age 35. No, this wasn't prime Messi, as prime Messi played 10 years ago and scored 91 goals in a calendar year. But this was a wiser and more confident Messi who trusted and had the full trust of his teammates, and although not possessing the stamina or pace of his youth, had enough energy to make decisive runs and defense-splitting passes. As Zidane had shown in 2006, you don't need to be fast when you can simply evade players with sublime touch and technique. Check out every touch he had in his masterful performance against Croatia in the semifinal. Watch how often he receives the ball in the midfield and calmly retains possession of the ball while under pressure from multiple players. His assist for Alvarez was vintage Messi and the best assist of the tournament.

At an age when most other GOAT candidates had either retired or were playing in retirement leagues, Messi won Man of the Match 5 times in 7 games, produced moment after moment of magic and willed his team to victory. Is this enough aura and mystique yet for the pro-Maradona crowd who thought Maradona would never be surpassed? Sure, Argentina needed some luck along the way, as they survived two penalty shootouts and faced a relatively easy path to the final, courtesy of Brazil losing to Croatia. But we all know that international tournaments are high-variance, and Messi had been unlucky many times in previous World Cups and Copa Americas. If you called him a choker in previous tournaments, you can't complain about his luck in 2022.

Messi as a player has the best attributes of Xavi, Zidane, and Romario rolled into one. Those of us who have watched his whole career knew he was on the GOAT path 10 years ago. Statistically he is the GOAT, and now he has all the accolades and longevity to be considered the undisputed GOAT. And the best part about this? He's not done. His vision and technique won't just go away. It's not out of the question for him to play and win another Copa America or even World Cup. I would love to see what 39 year old GOAT can do in 2026.

Messi with Benzemas **** buddy



Messi with the teams cook