|
Argentinian genius, Barcelona's best player. And barely out of nappies... the closest thing yet to 'the new Maradona'The few hundred who watched Messi as 14-year-old playing for Barcelona’s youth teams will not be surprised at his progression to football’s ‘A’ list.
Just 5ft 4in, Messi has never let physical deficiencies or age prevent him from excelling. At 14, he was so small that his legs didn’t touch the floor when he sat on the bench, earning him the nickname ‘The Flea’. Still, he progressed rapidly at Barça, shattering age records along the way, making his first team debut at 16 in a friendly against Juventus which left a watching Fabio Capello wondering who “the little devil” was.
Statistics alone can’t encompass Messi’s brilliance. There will be more prolific goalscorers and better free kick specialists, but the Rosario born attacker is the most enduring challenger to the ‘new Maradona’ tag.
Shy off the field, he prefers home cooking and computer games to nightclubs. On it, he’s a creative livewire who produces regular moments of jaw-dropping skill with a deftness of which Barça legend Johan Cruyff would be proud.
Messi can play as an attacking midfielder, on either wing or even as a centre forward. Quick, cool headed, two-footed (although he favours his left), he has quickly risen to become Barça’s most important player.
|
No comments:
Post a Comment