When Lionel Messi moved to another country to play professional football, many thought his career was over; His 11 goals in 34 games in all competitions went on to consolidate such a fact. On the other hand, life seems to be taking a pleasant turn for the Argentina great this season as he has already matched his last season’s tally in 18 lesser games this season for French Ligue 1 giant Paris Saint-Germain. His teammate, Brazilian sensation Neymar, spoke about his effort on making Messi feel at home in France through helping him on the pitch and in training by talking with him.
Of course it is never easy for a player to transfer to another club after spending his entire career in his current club, especially if the next destination is situated in another country. With his arch-nemesis Cristiano Ronaldo able to find a way to exhibit his greatness on and off the pitch as well as win trophies in different countries with numerous clubs, like Manchester United in England, Real Madrid in Spain and Juventus in Italy, it is no secret that Messi wants to emulate similar achievements.
Last season was one to be forgotten for La Pulga, with PSG also struggling to find a way to accommodate the strike force of Messi, Neymar and home crowd favourite Kylian Mbappé. But the latest season is so much different from the last edition as the trio has been assisting each other to score goals or doing the deed themselves, with 40 goals having already been scored between the three of them. The Argentine captain is showing why he is arguably one of the best ever to grace the game of football, with things looking really good for him, and such a form is just right as the FIFA World Cup in Qatar nears.
Ready for the World Cup
Argentina has always been a strong contender for the World Cup in past history, having won two editions in 1978 and 1986 and finishing second-place thrice in 1930, 1990 and 2014; The last runner-up placing was a Argentina team led by none other than Lionel Messi as the captain where he has won the Golden Ball award by being the best player throughout the tournament.
At the age of 35, one would imagine this year’s World Cup could potentially be Messi’s final appearance in the biggest stage of world football, and he would want nothing more than winning the unmatched accolade to close out his amazing career, after also winning two international trophies in recent years, namely a Copa America and a CONMEBOL-UEFA Cup of Champions; He might already be retired in the next edition or would not even make into the squad being a 39-year-old player.
What is your take on the Messi-led Argentina’s chances in the 2022 FIFA World Cup? Or do you think his rival Cristiano Ronaldo would stand a better chance in their apparent final shot at that elusive crown?
