Lionel Messi
Lionel Andrés "Leo" Messi Cuccittini (Spanish pronunciation: [ljoˈnel anˈdɾes ˈmesi]; born 24 June 1987), commonly known as Lionel Messi) is an Argentine footballer who currently plays. as a forward for club Barcelona and the Argentina national football team. He is one of the best players of all time and the best player in the world right now. He is also the owner of 6 Golden Balls in 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2015, 2019. FIFA Best Player 6 times, the first player to win 6 times the European Golden Shoe and countless other awards. awards, another record. His playing style has been compared to the legendary Diego Maradona, who considers Messi to be his "heir".
Messi started playing football at an early age and his talent was discovered by the Barcelona club. He left his hometown team Newell's Old Boys in 2000 and moved with his family to Spain after Barcelona offered to help with the costs of treating growth hormone deficiency. Having made his debut in the 2004-2005 season, he broke La Liga's youngest player record and became the youngest player to score in the competition at the time. The titles that came to Barca in Messi's first season were the La Liga championship, and they won the double when they won both La Liga and the Champions League in the 2006-07 season. 2006-07 was the breakthrough season for Barca. England: became a key player in the first team, scoring a hat-trick in El Clásico and ending the season with 14 goals in 26 games. The 2008-09 season was Messi's most successful season as he scored 38 goals and became a key factor in the Catalan team's treble. This record was later broken in the 2009–10 season, when Messi scored 47 goals in all competitions, equaling Ronaldo's record at Barcelona. He went on to surpass this record again in the 2010–11 season with 53 goals in all competitions. In the 2011-12 season, he set the record of becoming the player to score the most goals in a single La Liga season with 50 goals, and also set the record for the most goals scored in a single season in La Liga. all competitions, with 73 goals.
Since starting playing for Barcelona in 2005, he has always been a key factor in every victory of the Catalan giants. With Barcelona, Messi has won many different big and small titles, including 10 La Liga titles, 4 Champions League titles, and 6 Copa del Rey titles. He scored twice in the 2009 Final and the 2011 Final against rivals Manchester United. He currently holds the record for the most goals scored in a season for Barcelona with 73 goals. He is also the first person to win the UEFA Champions League Top Scorer award three times in a row since the tournament was renamed. Messi is the first player in football history to receive the Golden Ball 5 times (both before and after the merger of the two FIFA Player of the Year awards and the European Golden Ball into the FIFA Ballon d'Or). 2011), ahead of legends like Johan Cruyff, Michel Platini and Marco van Basten who have all received the Ballon d'Or three times and are the second player to receive the Ballon d'Or three times in a row, after Michel Platini. In 2012, Messi became the first player to score five goals in a UEFA Champions League match, in a 7–1 win over Bayer Leverkusen. Later that year, he broke the record for the most goals scored in a calendar year with 91 goals. Two years later, Messi both finished second in the race to win the Ballon d'Or, behind Cristiano Ronaldo. By the 2014-15 season, Messi was the driving force that led Barcelona to win the treble for the second time in the club's history. He went on to win 3 more La Liga titles with the team in 2016, 2018 and 2019. Messi currently holds the record for the most goalscorer and most assists in La Liga, and is also the Top scorer in the history of FC Barcelona. Messi also becomes the second player after Xavi to make 700 appearances for Barcelona. Messi has scored 614 goals for his club Barcelona, only needing 30 more to break Pelé's record for the most goals for a club (643 goals)
Messi was the top scorer of the 2005 FIFA U-20 World Cup with 6 goals, including 2 in the final. Not long after that, he was called up to the Argentina national football team. In 2006, he became the youngest Argentine player to compete at the World Cup and finished second in the 2007 Copa América. In 2008, in Beijing, he won his first international title. with the Argentina Olympic team to win the Olympic gold medal. He is currently the player with the most goals for the Argentina national football team. As captain of the national team since August 2011, he has reached the finals of three major tournaments with Argentina: the 2014 World Cup, in which he won the Ballon d'Or, along with two other tournaments. Copa America in 2015 and 2016. After announcing his retirement from the national team in 2016, he withdrew his decision and led the Argentina team to qualify for the 2018 World Cup. With 70 goals for the national football team. Messi is the second South American player after Pelé to score the most goals for South America (77 goals). On July 31, Messi set a record to become the player to win the most FIFA best player awards (The Best FIFA Men's Player) (6 times). On December 2, 2019, at the 64th Ballon d'Or awards ceremony in Paris, France. Messi won a record 6th Ballon d'Or, becoming the first player to win 6 Ballon d'Or, surpassing rival Cristiano Ronaldo (5 times).
Childhoods
Messi was born on June 24, 1987 in Rosario, Argentina to his father Jorge Horacio Messi (born 1958), a factory worker, and his mother Celia Maria Cuccittini, a laborer. His paternal side's family originated in the Italian city of Ancona and moved to Argentina in 1883. He has a younger sister named Maria Sol and two older brothers named Rodrigo and Matias. At the age of 5, Messi started playing for Grandoli, a local team led by his father. In 1995, Messi transferred to Newell's Old Boys, a team located in his hometown Rosario. At the age of 11, he was diagnosed with a problem with growth hormone. The River Plate Club showed an interest in Messi, but could not afford to pay for his medical treatment, which costs about $900 a month. Carles Rexach, sporting director of F.C. Barcelona, were interested in his talent because Messi had acquaintances in Lleida, Catalonia, and Messi and his father arranged a trial. Barcelona signed a contract with him after watching him play, agreeing to pay for his medical treatment and guarantee Messi's family jobs if he moved to Spain, especially the preliminary contract. The kit between him and the club was drafted on tissue paper with signatures from both sides. On December 14, 2000, his family moved to Europe and he started playing for the youth team football team.
Club career
Barcelona
Lionel Messi made his unofficial debut for the Barca first team in a friendly match against FC Porto on 16 November 2003 (at the age of 16 years and 145 days). Almost a year later, Frank Rijkaard let him make his first La Liga debut against Espanyol on 16 October 2004 (at the age of 17 years and 114 days), becoming the third youngest player to ever play for Barca and became the team's youngest player to play in La Liga (this achievement was later broken by Bojan Krkić in September 2007). When he scored his first official goal for the team against Albacete on 1 May 2005, Messi was 17 years, 10 months and 7 days old, becoming the youngest player ever to score for Barcelona in La Liga until 2015. 2007 when this record was broken by Bojan Krkic with a goal from Messi's assist. Talking about former coach Rijkaard, Messi said:
"I will never forget that he was the one who started my career. That he put his faith in me when I was 16 or 17 years old."
2005–06 season
Maradona and Pele's war of words will end.
Diego Maradona talks about the results if Messi wins the 2010 World Cup
On September 16, for the second time in three months, Barcelona gave an update on Messi's signing; This time it has improved and he is considered a member of the first team and the contract will run until June 2014.[28] Messi was recognized as a Spanish citizen on September 26, 2005 and was later allowed to play his first La Liga match. His first match in the Champions League was against Udinese on September 27 at the Nou Camp. In this match, Messi, with his ability to control the ball and coordinate with Ronaldinho, made a big impression as Barcelona won 4-1 against the Italian club.
Messi scored 6 goals in 17 league appearances, and scored 1 Champions League goal in 6 appearances. However, his season ended on 7 March 2006 after he met a injury in the second leg of the Champions League knockout round against Chelsea. Frank Rijkaard with Barcelona ended the season with the Spanish and European championships.
2006–07 season
In the 2006-07 season, Messi earned a regular spot in the squad, scoring 14 goals in 26 games. On November 12, in a match against Real Zaragoza, Messi suffered a serious injury that forced him to be sidelined for 3 months. Messi recovered from his injury in Argentina, and returned against Racing Santander on 11 February, a match in which he came on as a substitute. On 11 March, the El Clasico match saw Messi in top form as he scored a hat-trick to help Barca with only 10 men on the pitch to draw Real Madrid 3 - 3, of which the final goal came on addition time. As a result, he became the first player since Iván Zamorano (who scored for Real Madrid in the 1994-95 season) to score a hat-trick in an El Clasico match. Messi is also the youngest player ever to score in a match like this (19 years, 8 months and 14 days). As a result, by the end of the season he scored more regularly; 11 of his 14 La Liga goals have come from the last 13 matches.
Messi also proves that it's not wrong for people to call him "the new Maradona" by scoring the famous goals that Diego Maradona once scored. On 18 April 2007, he scored two goals in the Copa del Rey semi-final against Getafe CF, one of which is very similar to what is considered the Best of the Century. The sports world compared him to Maradona, and the Spanish press gave him the name "Messidona". He ran the same distance, 62m, beat the same number of players (6 players including the goalkeeper), scored from a very similar position, and ran to the corner just like Maradona did for 21 years. before. In a post-match interview, his teammate Deco stated:
"It was the best goal I've ever seen in my life."
In the match against RCD Espanyol, Messi also scored a goal similar to the one Maradona scored against England in the quarter-finals of the 1986 World Cup. Messi rushed forward and used his hand to put the ball into the net of goalkeeper Carlos Kameni. Although the Espanyol players reacted furiously and the videotape also showed it was a handball, the goal was still recognized.
2007–08 season
In the 2007-08 season, Messi scored 5 goals in a week to bring Barca into the top 4 in La Liga. On 19 September, he scored a goal to help Barcelona beat Olympique Lyonnais 3–0 at home in a Champions League match. He scored twice against Sevilla on 22 September and then on 26 September Messi scored two more in a 4–1 win over Real Zaragoza. On 27 February, Messi played his 100th official match for Barca against Valencia CF.
He was named in the professional players' team of the year for the striker position. An online vote was set up by the Spanish newspaper Marca and he was chosen as the best player in the world with 77 percent of the vote. Commentators for El Mundo Deportivo and Sport newspapers said the European Ballon d'Or should go to Messi, something supported by Franz Beckenbauer. Professional players like Francesco Totti say they consider Messi as one of the best players in the world right now.
Messi was sidelined for six weeks following an injury he sustained on March 4 against Celtic in the Champions League. It was the fourth time in three seasons that Messi suffered the same type of injury.
2008–09 season
After Ronaldinho left the team, Messi inherited the number 10 shirt. On 1 October 2008, in the Champions League match against Shakhtar Donestk, Messi, after coming on for Thierry Henry, scored twice in the last 7 minutes. , helping Barcelona come back to win 2-1. The next match was against Athletico Madrid, a confrontation between two close friends Messi and Sergio Agüero. Messi scored from a free-kick and set up another for Barca to win 6-1. Messi scored another impressive goal against Sevilla FC from a volley from 23 yards and then dribbled past the keeper and scored another goal. On 13 December 2008, in the first El Clasico of the season, Messi scored the second as Barcelona beat Real Madrid 2–0. He was also voted Player of the Year for the second time with 678 points.
Messi scored his first hat-trick of 2009 in the Copa del Rey against Athletico Madrid as Barcelona won 3-1. Messi scored another crucial double on 1 February 2009, coming on as a substitute and helping Barcelona come back to beat Racing Santander 2-1. The second of those two goals was Barca's 5000th in La Liga. In round 28 of La Liga, Messi scored his 30th goal in all competitions that season, helping the team beat Málaga CF 6-0. On 8 April 2009, he scored twice against Bayern Munich in the Champions League, setting a personal record of eight goals in the competition. On 18 April, Messi marked his 20th goal of the season in a 1–0 win over Getafe CF, giving Barcelona a six-point lead over Real Madrid.
As Barcelona neared the end of the season, Messi scored twice (his 35th and 36th goals of all seasons) to seal a 6-2 win over Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabéu in Real's heaviest defeat since 1930. After scoring each goal, he ran to the fans and pulled up his shirt to reveal another T-shirt with the words in Catalan: Síndrome X Fràgil (Fragile X Syndrome), to represent your support for children with this disease. Messi was also the player who allowed Andrés Iniesta to score in stoppage time in the Champions League semi-final to send Barcelona into the final against Manchester United. He won the Copa del Rey for the first time on 13 May after scoring one goal and assisting two in a 4–1 win over Athletic Bilbao. He helped the team win the double cup by winning La Liga. On 27 May he helped Barca win the Champions League with a header that doubled the Catalans' lead; He also became the top scorer of the C1 Cup. He is the youngest player in history to win this title with 9 goals. Messi was also voted the best striker of the year: The best player in Europe after an unbelievable year. This victory means Barcelona have won the Copa del Rey, the Champions League and La Liga in a single season, and it is the first Spanish team to win the treble.
2009–10 season
"Once he runs, no one can stop him. He's the only one who can change the game with just a few runs."
"He's the best player in the world with a long distance to the rest. He's like in Play Station. He can take advantage of every mistake we make."
Arsene Wenger after his Arsenal game 4-1 loss to F.C. Barcelona.
Sau khi vô địch Siêu cúp bóng đá châu Âu 2009, huấn luyện viên Barcelona Josep Guardiola cho biết Messi là cầu thủ giỏi nhất ông từng thấy.
After winning the 2009 UEFA Super Cup, Barcelona coach Josep Guardiola said Messi was the best player he had ever seen.
On September 18, Messi signed a new contract with Barcelona, which runs until 2016 with a release clause of 250 million euros including a salary of 9.5 million euros per year making him and teammate Zlatan Ibrahimovic the the highest paid people in La Liga. Four days later, on September 22, Messi scored two goals and assisted one in Barca's 4-1 win over Racing Santander. Messi scored his first European goal on September 29 in a 2–0 win over Dynamo Kyiv. Messi took his tally to six in seven La Liga games with one in a 6-1 win over Real Zaragoza and also scored a penalty in a 4-2 win over RCD Mallorca on November 7. On December 1, 2009, Messi won the Ballon d'Or, beating Cristiano Ronaldo by a record 473 to 233. Later, France Football magazine quoted Messi as saying: "I dedicate it to my family. They were always there when I needed them and sometimes it felt like they were stronger than me."
On 19 December 2009, Messi scored the winning goal in the 2009 FIFA Club World Cup final against Estudiantes in Abu Dhabi.[98] Two days later, he was named FIFA Player of the Year; beat Cristiano Ronaldo, Xavi, Kaká and Andrés Iniesta to win the award. This is the first time he has won this title, and also becomes the first Argentine to win this award. On 10 January 2010, Messi scored his first hat-trick of 2010 and also his first of the season in a 5–0 win over CD Tenerife. On 17 January, Messi scored his 100th goal for the team in a 4–0 win over Sevilla FC.
He then began an impressive run of goalscoring 11 goals in five games. Starting with a goal in the 84th minute in a 2-1 win over Málaga CF, he then scored twice in a 2-2 draw with UD Almería. He continued his impressive form with a stellar week as he scored eight goals; started with a hat-trick in a 3-0 home win over Valencia CF, then scored twice in a 4-0 win over VfB Stuttgart that sent Barcelona into the quarter-finals of the Champions League[102] and finally scored another hat-trick in 4-2 victory over Zaragoza, becoming the first Barcelona player to score two consecutive hat-tricks in La Liga.[104] He played his 200th official match for Barcelona against CA Osasuna on 24 March 2010. On 6 April 2010, in Messi's first time scoring four goals in a match, he scored four in the victory. 4-1 against Arsenal in the second leg of the quarter-finals of the UEFA Champions League. This also put him past Rivaldo to become Barca's top scorer in this tournament. After that, Barcelona had to stop in the semi-finals of Europe's most prestigious arena after losing to Inter Milan with a total score of 2-3 after 2 matches.[106] On 10 April 2010, Messi scored his 40th goal of the season when he scored his first in a 2–0 El Clasico win over Real Madrid. He completed a quite successful season with a brace against Valladolid in the final round, bringing the team to the La Liga championship with a record score of 99 points/38 matches.
2010–11 season
On 21 August 2010, Messi started the season with a hat-trick in a 4–0 win over Sevilla in the second leg of the Spanish Super Cup (first leg lost 1-3), thereby helping Barcelona to the title. first of the season. His opening goal in La Liga this season came in the first round against Racing Santander on August 29, 2010. Messi also had a perfect warm-up in the UEFA Champions League with a brace. against Panathinaikos with two assists (he missed a penalty in Barcelona's 5-1 win)
On 20 November, in the match that Barcelona beat rivals UD Almería 8-0, Messi scored his second hat-trick of the season. The second of this hat-trick was his 100th in La Liga. He also set his own record when he lifted the streak of consecutive goals for Barcelona to 9 (Messi also scored in a friendly against Brazil in an Argentina shirt shortly after). That achievement was halted when he failed to score in the super classic match against Real Madrid on November 29, although Messi was still a good player and had a key part in Barcelona's 5-0 victory. , especially 2 assists for David Villa to score (double). In the next rounds, Messi still played in brilliant form with double goals against CA Osasuna and Real Sociedad. He has a total of 60 goals for club and country in all competitions (including 58 goals/54 matches for Barcelona club).
Messi is on the shortlist of three shortlisted candidates for the 2010 FIFA Ballon d'Or (along with Iniesta and Xavi). On January 10, 2011, during the 2010 FIFA Ballon d'Or gala, the first award combined by the FIFA Player of the Year and the European Golden Ball, Messi surprised by surpassing both two candidates left to win the 2010 FIFA Ballon d'Or, although he had an unsuccessful performance at the 2010 World Cup.
Just two days after being awarded the award, he scored his first hat-trick of 2011 and his third hat-trick of the whole season against Real Betis. He started the second leg of the season with a penalty kick against Racing Santander.[118] After scoring, Messi ran towards the photojournalists at the end of the pitch, pulling his shirt up over his chest to reveal the words "Happy Birthday Mom" printed on the shirt inside.[119] He continued his scoring form with a brace against Almería in the 2010-11 Copa del Rey semi-finals,[120] and another brace less than a week later against Hércules CF. On 5 February, Barcelona broke the league's record for most consecutive wins with 16 wins after they beat Atlético Madrid 3–0 at the Nou Camp.
After two games without scoring, he scored in a 2-1 win over Barcelona's Athletic Bilbao. The following week, for the first time of the season, he scored from a header in a 3–0 away win against Mallorca. This victory equaled the 19-match unbeaten La Liga away record set by Real Sociedad in the 1979–80 season. Three days later, this record was broken when Messi scored the only goal in the win over Valencia. On 8 March, Messi scored twice against Arsenal in the UEFA Champions League round of 16, helping Barcelona win 3–1 and reach the quarter-finals of the tournament. After not scoring for a month, he scored a brace against Almería, the second goal also helping him equal the 47 goals for the club that he set last season. He broke his record on 12 April 2011 by scoring the only goal in the second leg of the UEFA Champions League quarter-final against Shakhtar Donetsk, also placing him in the record books as the top scorer in the Champions League. 1 season for Barcelona. with the goal to seal the score 1–1 at the Santiago Bernabéu, he had 8 goals in the super classic match.
In the semi-final first leg of the Champions League, he had a memorable performance when he scored 2 goals against Real Madrid, the second goal was a solo dribble through the block of 5 players before skillfully finishing. the point of defeating goalkeeper Casillas. In the final at Wembley, Messi scored a goal to make it 2-1 against Manchester United, thereby giving Barcelona its third Champions League title in six years and the fourth in history. club history. This is also Messi's 12th goal in the Champions League this season, helping him equal Ruud Van Nistelrooy's record of 12 goals in a single European cup season, since the tournament was renamed the UEFA Champions League in 1992. In all European Cup history, José Altafini was the highest scorer in a season with 14 goals, although Messi also equaled this record the following season. At the end of the 2010-11 season, he had a total of 53 goals and 24 assists in all competitions.
2011–12 season
"Messi has his own personality and so do I. He has his own game and so do I. I also play at the same big club as him. We are different in every way. But Right now, he's the best player."
—Cristiano Ronaldo, September 2011
In the 2011 Spanish Super Cup, Messi scored a total of 3 goals and provided 2 assists, thereby helping Barca overcome Real Madrid with a total score of 5–4. With 3 goals against Real in 2 matches, Messi increased the number of times he conceded this team to 13 and surpassed Raúl González (6 goals) to become the highest scorer in the Super Cup (8). table). He and Barca reap another trophy when he scored from midfielder Fredy Guarín's careless cross and set up Cesc Fàbregas to make it 2–0 in the European Super Cup match against Porto.
After two consecutive games without a taste of victory, Barcelona had a devastating 8–0 win over CA Osasuna, in which Messi scored a hat-trick and had a special celebration by clapping his hands in quick succession. thighs instead of pointing to the sky every time to score as usual. This is his celebration for Soufian, a 10-year-old Moroccan boy with Laurin Sandrow syndrome, a very rare disease that causes deformities in the limbs.
On September 28, Messi scored his first two goals in the 2011–12 Champions League against BATE Borisov and became the second-highest scorer in the club's history, equaling László Kubala's record of 194 goals in all competitions. official match.[141] He continued to surpass this record when he scored twice against Racing Santander and was second only to César Rodríguez with 232 goals. He is also the second-highest scorer in La Liga for Barcelona with 132 goals, one more than Kubala. He scored his 200th goal for Barcelona and scored two more in a hat-trick in the next match against Viktoria Plzeň in the Champions League.
Messi scored a brace against Santos FC in the 2011 FIFA Club World Cup final and was voted man of the match and was awarded the Golden Ball for his performance at the tournament. solution.
Messi was the first player to receive UEFA's European Player of the Year award, beating teammate Xavi Hernández and Real Madrid's Cristiano Ronaldo. He continued to surpass these two players to receive the 2011 FIFA Golden Ball award. By winning the FIFA Ballon d'Or again, Messi became the fourth player to win three golden balls, after Johan Cruyff, Michel Platini. and Marco Van Basten and is the second player after Michel Platini to receive this award three times in a row. He also received the IFFHS's international top scorer award, with 19 goals in 2011.
On 19 February 2012, Messi, in his 200th La Liga match, scored four goals in a 5–1 win over Valencia CF. On 7 March, Messi set a record becoming the first player to score five goals in a Champions League game since the tournament was renamed in 1992, helping the defending champions beat Bayer Leverkusen 7 -first.
On 20 March, with a hat-trick in a 5-3 win over Granada CF, he surpassed legendary César Rodríguez's record of 232 goals to become the top scorer in official FC Barcelona competitions.
On 3 April, Messi scored his 14th Champions League goal when he successfully scored two penalties against Milan in the quarter-final second leg. This number of goals allows him to surpass his own record as well as Ruud van Nistelrooy's record of 12 goals in a single UEFA Champions League season and match José Altafini's record of 14 goals in a single European Cup season ( season 1962–63), before the tournament was renamed the UEFA Champions League in 1992. However, Messi failed to score in the semi-finals despite having a pass in the second leg, in addition he also missed an important penalty when the ball hit the crossbar.
On 11 April, Messi scored his 61st goal against Getafe CF, and provided two assists. On 2 May, he scored a hat-trick against Málaga CF to surpass Gerd Müller's record (67 goals in 1972–73) with 68 goals, thereby becoming Europe's top scorer in a single season. season.[156] He then scored four times against RCD Espanyol on 5 May to take his tally in all competitions this season to 72, becoming only the second man to reach the 70-goal mark in a single season after Archie. Stark of Bethlehem Steel in the American Soccer League season 1924-1925.
On 25 May, he scored again in the 2012 Copa del Rey final, helping Barcelona win their 26th Spanish Cup, and bringing his season's tally to a record 73 across all competitions. duel.[158][159] It was Guardiola's last game as Barcelona manager, and also Messi's second Copa del Rey trophy, after their defeat in the final a year earlier, and their 14th title. of Barcelona under Guardiola. Despite failing to win the Liga for the fourth time in a row and coming in second only to great rivals Real Madrid, Messi still finished the 2011–12 season with a record 50 Liga goals and a second La Liga top scorer. Liga. He is also the second best passer in La Liga this season with 16 assists, behind Mesut Özil (17 times). In addition, he also won the UEFA Champions League top scorer title for the fourth time in a row with 14 goals.[158] and is one of the league's top assists with 5 assists. He finished the season with more goals and assists than any other player, 73 goals and 29 assists in all club competitions.
2012–13 season
"My record has stood for 40 years, with 85 goals in 60 games, and now the best player in the world has broken it. I'm happy for him. Messi is an unbelievable player, an extraordinary talent."
—Gerd Muller.
In the first match of the season against Real Sociedad, Messi opened fire with 2 goals in a 5-1 victory at the Nou Camp. Messi continued to score on the penalty spot in a 3-2 win over Real Madrid in the first leg of the Spanish Super Cup on August 23.[161] He scored a brace to help Barca come back from home against Osasuna 2-1[162] and scored another goal from a free-kick in the second leg of the Spanish Super Cup. However, Barcelona, with only 10 men remaining on the field, were defeated by Real Madrid on the away goals rule.[163] This is also Messi's 15th goal in the super classic matches between Real Madrid-Barcelona, making him Barcelona's top scorer in El Clásico matches, equal to Raúl's record and second only to Alfredo Di Stefano (18 goals). Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo both finished second in UEFA's 2012 UEFA Best Player in Europe poll with just 17 votes, behind his Barcelona team-mate Andrés Iniesta.[166] Messi scored twice in the win over Getafe on 15 September[167] and scored twice in the opening match of the 2012-13 Champions League against Spartak Moscow on 20 September, which ended 3-2 in favor about Barcelona.
On 11 November, with two goals scored against Real Mallorca and also his 75th and 76th goals in 2012, Messi surpassed Pelé's milestone of 75 goals in a year, and just below the all-time record. era of Gerd Müller 9 more goals. His 77th and 78th goals came in the match against Real Zaragoza at the Nou Camp, thereby closing the gap to 7 goals. On 20 November, Messi again scored his 79th and 80th goals of 2012 against Spartak Moscow and was exactly five goals away from Gerd Müller's 85 goals. On November 25, in the 13th round of La Liga, he continued to shorten this number to 3 goals with another brace to help Barca beat Levante 4-0 and increase the gap with Real to 11 points. On 1 December, Messi's 83rd and 84th goals against Athletic Bilbao meant he was only one goal behind Müller. Two goals in this match also helped Messi equal César Rodríguez's 190 goals for Barcelona in La Liga. On 5 December, he was injured after a collision with goalkeeper Artur Moraes and had to leave the field in the 84th minute in the 0 - 0 draw between Barcelona and Benfica. On 9 December, after recovering from injury, he scored two more goals against Real Betis, his 85th and 86th goals in 2012, to officially break the 40-year record held by Gerd Muller and He also surpassed Rodriguez to become Barcelona's number one scorer in La Liga. Messi once again shone in La Liga when he scored a brace against Cordobad to reach 88 goals a year. But his record was not recognized by FIFA. And FIFA itself has never recognized Gerd Müller's record of 85 goals per year. However, after that, it seems to have noticed the fierce criticism from the public, FIFA "skillfully" recognized Messi's record by choosing the moment Messi scored a double against Betis, thereby officially breaking Gerd Muller's 85-goal record, is one of the memorable moments of world football 2012.[180] Consecutive joy came to Messi when entering the new year 2013, he set another record when he won the FIFA Golden Ball for the fourth time in a row with 41.60% of the votes, much higher than Cristiano Ronaldo, who with only 23.68% of the vote and Andrés Iniesta with 10.91%. On 16 February 2013, Messi scored twice to surpass the 300-goal mark for Barcelona in a La Liga match against Granada CF. On 2 March 2013, Messi scored in a 2–1 loss to Real Madrid. With that goal, Lionel Messi equaled the number of 18 goals scored in Alfredo Di Stefano's super classic matches.[184] On 9 March 2013, Messi came on as a substitute against Deportivo de La Coruña and broke the world record by scoring 17 consecutive matches in a single competition (La Liga).[185] His streak of achievements continued to 33 goals in 21 matches and only stopped when Barcelona met Atletico Madrid.
On 12 March, Messi scored twice and assisted the fourth goal of the game, thereby helping Barcelona defeat A.C. Milan (4–0) in the second leg of the round of 16 of the Champions League. Messi's opening goal against Milan has received much attention and has been compared to Diego Maradona's famous goal against Greece in the 1994 World Cup. On 17 March 2013, against Rayo Vallecano , Messi took the captain's armband for the first time in an official club game after Andrés Iniesta was substituted. On 30 March, he extended his shooting streak to 19 consecutive La Liga matches and thereby became the first player in La Liga history to score against the remaining 19 teams in consecutive matches.
Messi is on another level. At a level where it's just him and then the rest. What he can do is extraordinary. He deserves to be admired.
Bayern Munich midfielder Franck Ribery.
On 2 April 2013, after opening the scoring against Paris Saint-Germain, Messi injured his left hamstring and was substituted early in the second half. On 13 May 2013, Messi was forced to leave. field and could not play the entire match against Atletico Madrid due to a recurrence of a left leg injury. The club then announced that he would be out for the rest of the season due to injury.[194] In the quarter-final second leg of the Champions League against Paris Saint-Germain, Barcelona were leading and Messi, after coming on in the 62nd minute, coordinated with David Villa to assist Pedro to seal the score 1- 1 (3-3), thereby helping Barca reach the semi-finals thanks to the away goals rule. However, Barcelona were still knocked out in the semi-finals by then league winners Bayern Munich. In addition, the club also had to stop in the semi-finals of the Copa del Rey by rival Real Madrid. However, Barcelona still managed to win the La Liga title from Real Madrid, and achieved the milestone of 100 points per season that they achieved last season. Messi once again became La Liga's top scorer for the second year in a row with 46 goals and 12 assists. By the end of the season, he had scored a total of 60 goals and 16 assists in all competitions.
2013–14 season
Messi was nominated for the UEFA Player of the Year award alongside Cristiano Ronaldo and Franck Ribéry for the third year in a row.[197] Ribéry was the recipient of the award with 36 votes. Messi came in 2nd place with 14 votes, while Ronaldo finished in 3rd place with 3 votes. On 18 August 2013, Messi opened La Liga 2013–14 with a 7-0 crushing win over Levante UD, in which he had 2 goals and 1 assist.[200] On August 28, Barcelona won their 11th Super Cup title after winning against Atlético Madrid by away goals rule.
On 1 September, Messi scored his 23rd career hat-trick in a 3–2 win over Valencia CF. With these goals, he became the player with the most away goals in the history of the tournament with 100 times conceding the opponent. In addition, he is also the sixth goalscorer in La Liga history when surpassing Quini's 219 goals. On 18 September 2013, Messi scored his 24th hat-trick in a 4–0 home win over Ajax in the Champions League. This number of goals made him the second-highest scorer in the Champions League, with 62, second only to Raúl, and fourth in all European competitions with 63. With this hat-trick, Messi is also the first person to score four hat-tricks in the Champions League. On 10 November, Messi was injured in a 4–1 away win against Real Betis and sidelined him until January 2014, which was also his third injury of the season.
On 8 January 2014, Messi returned to the pitch and scored twice against Getafe in the Copa del Rey. On 13 January, he finished 2nd behind Cristiano Ronaldo in the FIFA Ballon d'Or 2013 voting. On 15 February, Messi scored twice against Rayo Vallecano to overtake compatriot Alfredo di Stéfano and finish third with Raúl in the list of the greatest strikers in La Liga history with 228 goals.
On 16 March 2014, Messi scored a hat-trick in a 7–0 win over Osasuna and surpassed Paulino Alcántara to become Barça's top scorer in all competitions including friendlies. On 23 March, he again scored a hat-trick in a 4–3 win over Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabéu to become the top scorer in super classics.
Messi ended the season with the worst score after five successful seasons with Barca, although he still scored 41 goals in all matches. For the first time in five years, Barcelona ended the season empty-handed; they were defeated 1-2 in the Copa del Rey final against Real Madrid and eliminated by Atlético Madrid in the quarter-finals of the Champions League. Even in La Liga, Barca has been usurped by Atletico. This caused Messi to be booed by the fans at Camp Nou. In the second half of the 2013-14 season, doubts continued to exist about Messi's motivation to play, many believed that he was keeping his strength for the 2014 World Cup finals. According to statistics, his contribution from The number of goals, shots and assists has decreased significantly compared to last season.
Messi signed a new contract on May 19, 2014, just one year after his latest contract update; his salary increased to 20 million euros, or 36 million euros without taxes, the highest salary of a football player.
2014-15 season
Under new coach Luis Enrique, Messi has enjoyed a good start to the 2014-2015 season, breaking three records at the end of the year. A hat-trick scored against Sevilla on 22 November made him the all-time leading goalscorer in La Liga as he surpassed the 59-year-old record of 251 goals set by Telmo Zarra. Three days later, he scored another hat-trick against APOEL, surpassing Raúl Gonzalez's record of 71 to become the top scorer in Champions League history. A third hat-trick, scored against city rivals Espanyol on 7 December, helped him surpass César Rodríguez as the top scorer in Derbi barceloní matches with 12 goals. Messi is second in the race for the 2014 FIFA Ballon d'Or after Cristiano Ronaldo, largely thanks to his runner-up finish with Argentina at the 2014 World Cup.
At the beginning of 2015, Barcelona suddenly fell, and the media suggested that Messi was considering leaving the club after having a disagreement with coach Enrique. The incident became more serious when in the match against Real Sociedad, Enrique locked both Messi and Neymar on the bench. At that time, the BLD team even considered sacking Enrique to keep Messi in. The risk of this coach losing his job becomes even more obvious when it seems that President Bartomeu seems to have found a new leader to replace Enrique, and will replace the coaching chair immediately if Barca continue to receive a bad result in the upcoming match to Atlético. However, a turning point occurred on 11 January in a match against Atlético Madrid, when Barça launched three attacking forwards for the first time in Messi, Luis Suárez and Neymar, dubbed "MSN", each scoring goals in that match helped Barca win 3-1, thereby helping Luis Enrique keep his seat and mark a successful start. After five years of playing in the leading position, Messi returned to his old position on the right wing late last year, at the suggestion of his teammate Suárez. From there, he regained his form - arguably his best form, while Suárez and Neymar ended their reliance on the team's attack on the Argentinian star. With Messi's 58 goals, the attacking trio netted a total of 122 goals in all competitions that season, a record for Spanish football.
By the 37th round of La Liga, Messi scored the only goal in a 1–0 win over Atlético Madrid on May 17 to help Barca win the La Liga title. Among his 43 goals in the domestic league was a hat-trick scored in 11 minutes against Rayo Vallecano on 8 March, which was his fastest hat-trick; it was Messi's 32nd hat-trick for Barcelona, helping him surpass Telmo Zarra as the player with the most hat-tricks in Spanish football history. In addition, he is the player with the most assists in La Liga as the top goalscorer of the season with 18 assists, surpassing Luís Figo as the player with the most assists in La Liga. Liga, he scored a record 106th in a match against Levante on 15 February scoring a hat-trick. Messi then scored twice as Barcelona beat Athletic Bilbao 3-1 in the Copa del Rey final on May 30, achieving the sixth double in the team's history. Leo's opening goal was hailed as one of the greatest of his career; He collected the ball near the halfway line and beat four opposing players, before getting past the keeper to score a very tight angle. The goal was later voted as one of the final three contenders for the 2015 FIFA Puskás award.
In the Champions League, Messi scored twice and assisted Neymar in a 3-0 win over Bayern Munich in the semi-final first leg, a team under Guardiola. His second goal, just three minutes after he scored the first, he beat goalkeeper Manuel Neuer after a clever dribble past Jérôme Boateng sent the defender to the ground; it went viral throughout society, becoming the most popular moment of the time and was voted UEFA's best goal of the season by UEFA. Despite losing 2-3 to Bayern in the second leg, Barcelona progressed to the final on June 6 in Berlin, where they beat Juventus 3-1 to claim their second treble, becoming the first team in history. can do that. Although Messi didn't score, he still left his mark, especially the second when he hit the ball and forced goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon to push the ball away, creating an opportunity for Suárez to score. Messi finished the match as one of the top three goalscorers in C1 with 10 goals (equal to Ronaldo and Neymar), giving him the distinction of being the first player to achieve a high score. best in five seasons in the Champions League. For his efforts during the season, he received the UEFA Best Player in Europe award for the second time.
2015-16 season
Messi opened the 2015-16 season by scoring twice from a free-kick in Barcelona's 5-4 win (in extra time) over Sevilla in the European Super Cup. However, a 1-5 aggregate defeat to Athletic Bilbao in the Spanish Super Cup ended the team's hopes of a six, although Messi scored the only goal. On 16 September, he became the youngest player to play 100 UEFA Champions League matches in a 1–1 draw with Roma. On September 26, Messi was injured in a match against Barcelona's Las Palmas; Subsequent examinations confirmed that he had torn the medial lateral ligament of his left knee, and was to be away from the field for six to eight weeks. He was finally back on the pitch on 21 November, coming on as a substitute in Barcelona's resounding 4–0 win over Real Madrid in El Clásico. Messi and his teammates won the 2015 FIFA Club World Cup final on December 20, collecting his fifth trophy in 2015 as Barcelona beat River Plate 3-0 in Yokohama. Messi also won the silver ball of the tournament, despite missing the semi-final. On 30 December, Messi scored his 500th goal for Barcelona, in a 4–0 win over Real Betis.
On 6 January 2016, Messi scored two goals and helped Barca beat Espan yol 4-1 at Camp Nou, in the first match of the round of 16 of the 2015-16 Copa del Rey. Five days later, Messi won the 5th Ballon d'Or of his career. On 3 February, he scored a hat-trick in Barcelona's 7–0 win over Valencia in the first leg of the Copa del Rey semi-final at Camp Nou. With teammate Luis Suárez scoring another four goals in the same match, it was the first time two players had scored at least three at Camp Nou. The next match at Camp Nou, 6-1 victory over Celta de Vigo, Messi took the responsibility of taking the penalty but then passed it to Suárez to score. Some saw it as "a bias", while others criticized it as disrespecting the opponent. The Celta players, however, never complained and their coach had no say, saying, "Barca's striker is worthy of respect."
On 17 February, Messi scored his 300th goal in a 3–1 win over Sporting de Gijón. Days later, he scored both goals in Barcelona's 2–0 win over Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium, marking the club's 10,000th goal in its history. However, Barca soon became the former king of Europe when losing to Atletico in the quarterfinals. On 17 April, Messi scored his 500th career goal in a 1–2 loss to Valencia. Messi ended the 2015-16 season by setting up both goals in Barcelona's 2-0 win over Seville in the 2016 Copa del Rey final at the Vicente Calderón Stadium. Barca also successfully defended the La Liga title this season when 1 point more than Real. In total, Messi has scored 41 goals and provided 23 assists, with Barcelona's M-S-N trio scoring 131 goals over the course of the season, breaking the record they set last season.
2016-17 season
Messi opened the 2016-17 season by lifting the Spanish Super Cup in 2016, he was made captain of Barcelona without Andrés Iniesta due to injury; he assisted Munir's goal in a 2–0 win over Sevilla in the second leg on 14 August, and then scored and assisted in a 3–0 second leg win on 17 August. The next day, he scored two goals and helped Barcelona to a 6-2 win over Real Betis in the opening match of the 2016-17 La Liga season. On 13 September 2016, Messi scored his first hat-trick of the season in the opening match of the Champions League campaign against Celtic in a 7–0 win; this is also Messi's sixth hat-trick in the Champions League, more than any other player. A week later, Messi injured his groin in a 1-1 draw with Atlético Madrid and had to miss three weeks. He marked his comeback with a goal, scoring three minutes after coming off the bench in a 4–0 win over Deportivo de La Coruna, on 16 October. Three days later, he scored. scored his 37th hat-trick for the club as Barcelona beat Manchester City 4-0. On 1 November, Messi scored his 54th goal in Barcelona's Champions League group stage games in a 1–3 loss to Manchester City, surpassing Raúl's record of 53. On 12 November, Messi took second place in the 2016 Ballon d'Or race behind Cristiano Ronaldo, who won the title for the fourth time. He ended the year with 51 goals, making him Europe's top scorer, ahead of Zlatan Ibrahimović.
After placing second in the race for the Golden Ball, on 9 January 2017, Messi also finished second - behind Cristiano Ronaldo again - in the 2016 FIFA Best Player award. On 11 January, Messi scored from a free kick in Barcelona's 3–1 win over Athletic Bilbao in the second leg of the round of 16 of the Copa del Rey, allowing Barcelona to progress to the quarter-finals of the tournament. In his next match, on 14 January, Messi scored in a 5–0 win over Las Palmas; With this goal, he equaled Raúl's record for the number of teams conceded in La Liga (35). On 4 February, Messi scored his 27th goal for Barcelona in a 3–0 win over Athletic Bilbao in La Liga, surpassing Ronald Koeman to become the all-time leading scorer from free kicks. penalty kick. In the Champions League, after sublimating in the group stage with 10 goals, he suddenly lost in the knocked-ot round when he scored only 1 more goal and Barca was eliminated in the C1 quarter-finals against Juventus. On April 23, Messi scored twice in a 3-2 win over Real Madrid, marking the first time he had conceded a goal for the "White Vulture" in three years. But at the end of the season, Barca failed to defend the La Liga title when 3 points behind Real. On 27 May, Messi scored a goal and assisted Paco Alcáer in the 2017 Copa del Rey final, helping Barcelona to a 3–1 win over Alavés and was named man of the match. In total, Messi completed the 2016-17 season with 54 goals and 16 assists, while his 37 goals in La Liga helped him win the Pichichi title and the European Golden Shoe for the fourth time in his career. mine.
Season 2017-18
Messi opened the 2017–18 season with a penalty kick in Barcelona's 1-3 home loss to Real Madrid in the Spanish Super Cup. Thereby, Messi also raised his scoring record in El Clásico matches to 25 goals. On August 27, Messi scored his first two goals of the 2017–18 La Liga season in a 2–0 win over Alavés. Messi's first goal marked his 350th goal in La Liga, becoming the first player ever to reach the milestone. On 9 September, Messi scored his first hat-trick of the season against Espanyol in the Catalan derby, giving the Blaugrana a 5–0 win. Messi scored twice against goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon, on 12 September, when Barça beat Italian champions Juventus 3–0 at home in the group stage of the UEFA Champions League. On September 19, Messi scored four goals in a 6–1 win over Eibar at the Nou Camp in La Liga. Three weeks later, on 1 October, Messi surpassed former team-mate Carles Puyol to become the third-most capped player in the club's history, as he helped Barça beat Las Palmas 3-0 by assisting. for Sergio Busquets to open the scoring in his 594th official match for the club; The match took place at an empty stadium at Camp Nou due to violence in Catalonia related to the ongoing independence referendum.
On 18 October, in his 122nd European Cup match, Messi scored his 97th UEFA Champions League, and 100th European Cup goal, in a 3–1 win over Olympiakos. Messi became only the second player after Cristiano Ronaldo to reach this century-record milestone, but completed it with 21 games fewer than his great Portuguese arch-rival. On October 23, Messi finished second behind Ronaldo in the 2017 Men's Player of the Year Awards for the second year in a row. On 4 November, he made his 600th appearance for Barcelona in a 2–1 win over Sevilla in La Liga. After receiving his fourth Golden Boot, Messi signed a new contract with Barcelona on 25 November, keeping him at the club until the end of the 2020–21 season with a buy-back clause of 700 million euros. On December 23, Messi scored his 26th El Clasico goal from the penalty spot in Real Madrid's 3-0 win at the Bernabeu. On 7 January 2018, Messi made his 400th La Liga match against Barcelona in a 3–0 home win over Levante, marking the occasion with his 144th goal assist and 365th goal for Barcelona. club, helping him equal Gerd Müller's record for most goals scored for the same club in a single year in Europe's top five leagues. A week later, he broke Muller's record, scoring his 366th La Liga goal from a free-kick in a 4-2 win over Real Sociedad.
On 4 March, he scored his 600th career goal with a free kick in a 1–0 home win over Atlético Madrid, in La Liga. On 14 March, Messi scored his 99th and 100th Champions League goals in a 3–0 home win over Chelsea, becoming only the second player after Ronaldo to reach the milestone and achieve it at the age of 20. younger, fewer games, fewer minutes and fewer shots than the Portuguese; His opening goal, after just two minutes and eight seconds, was also the fastest of his career. In the same match, he also assisted Ousmane Dembélé for Barcelona's first goal; The result helped Barcelona progress to the quarter-finals of the Champions League for the tenth year in a row. However, Messi was dead in both quarterfinals against A.S. Roma, and Barca were bitterly eliminated after losing 0-3 to this opponent in the second leg at the Olimpico Stadium (despite winning 4-1 in the first leg). On 7 April, he scored a hat-trick in a 3–1 win over Leganés, including his sixth goal from a free-kick, equaling former teammate Ronaldinho's record. On May 7, Messi scored another goal in the El Clasico match at home, but Barca only drew 2-2. On 9 May, Messi scored as Barcelona beat Villarreal 5-1 to go on the longest unbeaten streak (43 games) in La Liga history. At the end of the season, Messi and Barca won back the La Liga title and successfully defended the Copa del Rey title for the fourth year in a row, personally setting a record for the fifth time to win the European Golden Shoe title.
2018-19 season
With the departure of former captain Andrés Iniesta in May 2018, Messi was elected as the team's new captain for the new season. On 12 August 2018, he lifted his first trophy as Barcelona captain, the Spanish Super Cup, following a 2–1 win over Sevilla; With his 33rd title for the club, he also became the player with the most trophies in the club's history. In the first match of the season in La Liga, Messi scored twice to help Barca beat Alaves 3-0. His second goal of the game, coming from a free kick, was also the 6000th in La Liga history [213]. On September 18, Messi scored a hat-trick in Barca's 4–0 home win over PSV Eindhoven in the opening match of the Champions League group stage, setting a record for the player with the most hat- best trick in tournament history (8 hat-tricks). On 20 October, Messi scored and assisted in a 4–2 home win over Sevilla, but he was then forced off in the 26th minute with a right arm injury which caused He had to take a three-week break. On 8 December, Messi scored two goals from free kicks - this was his 9th and 10th goals from a free-kick in 2018 - giving Barca a 4–0 away win. in the Derby match against Catalan rivals Espanyol in La Liga.
On 13 January 2019, Messi scored his 400th La Liga goal in his 435th appearance, giving the home side a 3–0 win over Eibar. Messi became the first player to compete in Europe's top five leagues to achieve this milestone. On 16 April, Messi scored twice in a 3–0 home win over Manchester United in the second leg of the Champions League quarter-finals, giving Barcelona a 4–0 aggregate victory. , through which Barcelona advanced to the semi-finals of the tournament for the first time since 2015; These were also his first goals in the quarter-finals of the Champions League since 2013.
On 27 April, Messi came off the bench and scored the only goal in a 1–0 home win over Levante, officially taking Barcelona to the La Liga title. This is his 450th appearance in La Liga, and also his first championship as captain of the club Barcelona. On 1 May, Messi scored twice in a 3–0 home win over Liverpool in the first leg of the Champions League semi-final; Messi's second goal of the game was a beautiful free kick from 35 yards, which was also his 600th goal in a Barcelona shirt. In the second leg six days later at Anfield, Barcelona suffered a 4-0 away defeat, which saw Liverpool progress to the final with a score of 4-3 after two legs. However, Messi is still somewhat comforted when he becomes the top scorer of the Champions League this season, with 12 goals.
On May 19, in the final match of the season in La Liga, Messi scored twice, helping the team to a 2-2 draw with Eibar (these were also his 49th and 50th goals in the Premier League). all competitions this season), through which he won La Liga's top scorer title in the 2018-19 season, with 36 goals in 34 appearances. Messi has officially equaled the record with Zara for the number of times he has won the La Liga Top Scorer award, with six times. He also won the European Golden Shoe award for the sixth time in his career, and for the third time in a row since the 2016-17 season. On 25 May, Messi scored his last goal of the season as Barcelona lost 1-2 to Valencia in the Copa del Rey Final 2019.
Season 2019-2020
In August 2019, Messi missed the tour to the US due to injury. And about a month later, he was injured again, which prevented Messi from playing in the first game of the La Liga season. On September 2, Messi became one of three candidates for the 2019 FIFA Puskas award with his goal against Real Betis in April 2019 of the previous season. Messi along with Cristiano Ronaldo, Virgil van Dijk, are 3 contenders for the 2019 The Best FIFA Men's Players award and won the award on September 23. Messi played his first game of the season on September 17, and on the same date. 6 October, he scored his first goal of the season with a free kick in a 4–0 home win over Sevilla; this was his 420th goal in La Liga, through which he broke Cristiano Ronaldo's record of 419 goals scored in Europe's top five leagues. On 23 October, Messi scored his first Champions League goal of the 2019-20 season in a 2–1 win over Slavia Prague, becoming the first player to score in 15 consecutive Champions League seasons (never. including qualifying rounds). He is also on par with Raúl and Cristiano Ronaldo, sharing the record for most goals scored in this tournament (33 goals). On 29 October, Messi scored and assisted twice in a 5–1 home win over Real Valladolid in La Liga. On 9 November, Messi scored three goals (including two free kicks) in a 4–1 win over Celta Vigo. This was his 34th hat-trick in La Liga, equaling Cristiano Ronaldo's record in Spain's top division. On 27 November, in his 700th appearance for Barcelona, Messi scored one goal and provided two assists in a 3–1 home win over Borussia Dortmund in the UEFA Champions League. . Borussia Dortmund are the 34th team he has scored in the tournament, breaking the previous record of 33 teams held by Cristiano Ronaldo and Raúl. On December 2, Messi won the sixth Ballon d'Or of his career. On 8 December, Messi scored a record 35th La Liga hat-trick in a 5-2 home win over Mallorca.
International career
In June 2004, he made his debut for the Argentina U-20 team in a friendly match against Paraguay. In 2005, he was a member of the Argentina U-20 team that won the 2005 World U-20 Championship in the Netherlands. Also in this tournament, he won the title of World U20 Top Scorer and World U20 Player of the Year.
In April 2005, Messi was called up by coach José Pekerman to the Argentina national team for the first time. He made his national team debut on August 17 against Hungary at the age of 18 years and 54 days, but it was an unforgettable memory for him. Coming on as a 63-minute substitute, he was shown a red card from referee Markus Merk 40 seconds later, who claimed that Messi had elbowed defender Vilmos Vanczák, who had pulled his shirt. This decision was controversial and even Maradona said it was a pre-arranged decision to ruin Messi's debut. Messi made his first-team debut on September 3, in Argentina's 0-1 away loss to Paraguay, in the 2006 World Cup qualifiers. Before that match, Messi said:
"This can be considered the first match. The first match was a bit short."
FIFA World Cup 2006
An injury prevented Messi from playing the final two months of the 2005-06 season and also threatened his ability to appear in the World Cup. However, Messi was still selected for the Argentina team for the tournament on 15 May 2006. He also played his final match before the World Cup against Argentina under-20s for 15 minutes and a friendly match against the national football team. Angola from the 64th minute. He did not play in Argentina's opening match against the Ivory Coast national football team, but only sat on the bench. In the next match against the Serbia national football team, Messi became the youngest player to appear for Argentina in a World Cup when he came on for Maxi Rodríguez in the 73rd minute. He set up Hernán Crespo's goal just minutes after coming on. pitch and also scored the decisive goal in a 6-0 win, making him the youngest player to score in the tournament and the sixth youngest to score in a World Cup. Messi started in the 0-0 draw with the Netherlands national football team. In the next match against the Mexican national football team, Messi came on as a substitute in the 84th minute, which ended in a 1-1 draw. He appeared and did once put the ball in the net, but it was offside and Argentina needed extra time to score the equalizer. Coach José Pekerman left Messi on the bench in the quarter-final match against the German national football team, which they lost 4-2 on penalties.
Copa America 2007
Messi played his first game in the 2007 Copa America on June 29, 2007, when Argentina beat the US national football team 4-1 in the opening match. In this match, he showed his skills in the position of an assist player. He set up a goal for striker Hernán Crespo and had many shots on target. Carlos Tevez came on for Messi in the 79th minute and scored a few minutes later.
In the second match against the Colombia national football team, he won a penalty and Crespo made it to level 1-1. He was also involved in Argentina's second goal when he was fouled outside the box, allowing Juan Román Riquelme to score from a free-kick, giving Argentina a 3-1 lead. The final result was 4-2 in favor of Argentina and sent them into the quarterfinals.
In the 3rd match against the Paraguay national football team, the coach let Messi rest. He came on as a substitute for Esteban Cambiasso in the 64th minute, when the score was 0-0. In the 79th minute he set up a goal for Javier Mascherano. In the quarter-finals, when Argentina met the Peru national football team, Messi scored the second goal of the match, from Riquelme's cross in a 4–0 win. In the semi-final against the Mexican national football team, Messi put a lob over Oswaldo Sánchez's head to send Argentina into the final with a 3-0 victory. Argentina then lost to the Brazil national football team 0-3 in the final.
2008 Beijing Olympics
After attempting to disqualify Messi from playing for Argentina's Olympic team at the 2008 Summer Olympics, F.C. Barcelona agreed to allow him to play in the tournament after he spoke with new coach Josep Guardiola. He played with the Argentina Olympic team and scored his first goal in a 2-1 win over Ivory Coast. He then scored the opener and provided an assist for Ángel Di María to score the second to give his side a 2-1 win in extra time against the Netherlands. He also played in the match against Brazil, this match Argentina won 3-0 and reached the final. In the gold medal match, Messi once again assisted Di Maria to score the only goal in a 1-0 victory over Nigeria.
FIFA World Cup 2010
Messi has attended the second World Cup in the Argentina shirt under the guidance of coach Diego Maradona. Also at this tournament, he first wore the number 10 shirt of the team. On 12 June 2010, he appeared and played the full 90 minutes in the Argentina 1–0 Nigeria match in Group B. He had a few chances to score but were blocked by Nigerian goalkeeper Vincent Enyeama, who He was later voted as the best player of the match by FIFA. On June 17, he played the full match Argentina 4-1 Korea. Playing as an attacking midfielder and providing more assists under coach Maradona Messi contributed in all four of the team's goals and helped Gonzalo Higuaín score a hat-trick in this match.
On June 23, Messi was given the captain's armband and played the full 90 minutes of Greece 0-2 Argentina (Group B). He was once again the core of Argentina's play when he played an important role in all of the team's goals,[241] and was voted man of the match.
On June 28, in the Round of 16 in Argentina 3-1 Mexico, coach Maradona still created conditions for Messi to play the full 90 minutes but he still could not score. He often played back to find the ball, attract the opponent's defense and even make a controversial pass to Carlos Tévez. The 2010 World Cup ended with Argentina after a 0-4 loss to Germany in the quarter-finals.
Copa América 2011, 2014 World Cup qualifiers and friendlies
Messi attended the 2011 Copa América in Argentina. In this tournament, he did not score a goal but had 3 assists. He was voted player of the match against Bolivia (1–1) and Costa Rica (3–0). However, the Argentina team had to stop in the quarterfinals after losing to Uruguay on penalties (draw 1–1 after 2 extra time) despite Messi's first penalty shootout.
After Argentina's defeat in the Copa América, Sergio Batista was sacked by the country's football association and replaced by Alejandro Sabella, former coach of the Estudiantes club. In August 2011, Sabella handed the captain's armband to Messi.
Messi's first hat-trick for Albiceleste came in a friendly against Switzerland on 29 February 2012, which ended in a 3–1 win for Argentina.
On June 9, 2012, Messi scored his second hat-trick for the national team in a friendly 4-3 win over rivals Brazil and Messi was also voted man of the match. This result has brought his number of goals scored for Argentina to 26 goals in 70 matches, including 7 goals in 3 matches in 2012 and also helps him to rank 4th in the list of all-time leading scorers for Argentina.
On September 7, Messi scored his 28th goal in a 3–1 win over Paraguay in the 2014 World Cup qualifiers. It was his fourth goal in 2014 qualifying and his eighth in World Cup qualifying matches, ranked 3rd among the top scorers for Argentina in qualifying matches. This is his 10th goal after 6 matches and also his 9th goal in 5 matches played in 2012 for the team. After scoring twice against Uruguay and one against Chile in October, Messi ended 2012 with 12 goals in nine appearances for Argentina.
On 22 March 2013, Messi scored his first international goal of 2013 from the penalty spot in a World Cup qualifying match against Venezuela. Also in this match, he also provided 2 assists for teammate Gonzalo Higuaín thereby helping Argentina win 3–0. On 14 June 2013, Messi scored a hat-trick in a friendly against Guatemala, surpassing Diego Maradona's 34 goals and catching up to Hernán Crespo's 35 goals. Messi continued to overcome Crespo after the World Cup qualifying match against Paraguay when he scored 2 goals and created 1 goal for Sergio Agüero. The match ended with a score of 5–2 in favor of Argentina, helping this team win tickets to Brazil 2 rounds early.
Messi ended the qualifying campaign with 10 goals, ranking 2nd in the list of South American goalscorers.
World Cup 2014
Before the World Cup in Brazil, doubts continued about Messi's form, as he ended an unsuccessful and injured season at Barcelona. However, at the start of the tournament, he put on strong performances, being named Argentina's opening man of the match of the match. In his first World Cup match as captain, he led the team to a 2-1 victory over Bosnia and Herzegovina; He left a shoe mark on the opening goal and directly scored the second goal after dribbling past three opponents. This was his first World Cup goal since his debut in the tournament eight years ago. In the second game against Iran, he scored a goal with a heart-stopping strike into the top corner in the 90th minute from 23 yards to end the match with a 1-0 victory, ensuring Argentina progress to the knockout round. out. He scored twice in the team's final match in a 3-2 win over Nigeria, especially his second goal coming from a beautiful free-kick. Messi set up Ángel Di María to score a late goal in extra time (116) to win 1-0 over Switzerland in the round of 16. After a 1-0 win in the quarter-final against Belgium, Argentina reached the semi-finals of the World Cup for the first time since 1990. After a 0-0 draw in extra time, the team knocked the Netherlands out 4-2 in a series of kicks. penalty shootout to reach the final against Germany
The World Cup final that year was called Messi vs Germany, the best player in the world against the best team in the world, the two teams have met in the final since 1990. In the first half hour. First, Messi scored a goal, but was fouled for offside. He missed many opportunities to open the scoring throughout the game, especially early in the second half, when his effort sent the German defense wobbling. Failing to take advantage of the opportunity to score, Argentina paid the price. Substitute Mario Götze of Germany finally scored in the 113th minute to end the game. After the final, Messi was awarded the Ballon d'Or as the tournament's best player as well as a silver medal for runner-up. Aside from being the third-highest scorer, with four goals he created the most chances, completed the richest runs, sent the most serves into the box and created the ball. throughout this tournament. However, his pick drew criticism as he failed to score in the knockout stages; FIFA President Sepp Blatter expressed his surprise, while Diego Maradona suggested that Messi did not score in the knocked-out for the sake of being deep in order to assist.
Copa America 2015
Unable to win the World Cup, Messi has set his sights quite high at the 2015 Copa América, held in Chile. Under the management of former Barcelona coach, Gerardo Martino, Argentina entered the tournament as the defending World Cup runners-up. In the opening match against Paraguay, the team had 2 goals in the first half but had to equalize in a 2-2 draw; Messi scored from a free kick, scoring his only goal in this tournament. Following a 1–0 win over defending champions Uruguay, Messi made his 100th cap for the team in the final group stage match, winning 1-0 over Jamaica, becoming only the fifth Argentine player to reach the milestone. . In his 100 appearances, he has scored a total of 46 goals for Argentina, including 22 in official matches.
When Messi led Argentina to the knockout round as the winner of the team. In the quarter-finals, they created many chances, including Messi's header, but were denied by the Colombian goalkeeper, and eventually ended the game goalless, and Argentina won with a scoreline. 5-4 in the penalty shootout. In the semi-finals, Messi excelled when he provided three assists and helped create three more goals in a 6-1 win over Paraguay. Argentina entered the final against host Chile with the goal of winning the title, but were defeated 4-1 by Chile in a penalty shootout after drawing 0-0 in regular time. After the tournament, he was selected to receive the Player of the Year award but declined to accept it. As Argentina's football has been in a state of thirst for trophies since 1993, two World Cup and Copa América defeats have once again brought harsh criticism of Messi from the Argentine media and fans.
Copa America Centenario 2016
Messi's chances of playing in the Copa América Centenario were initially put at risk when he injured his back during a 1–0 win over Honduras in a warm-up match against Copa América 2016 on 27 May 2016. After that, it was reported that he had bruised his lower back, but Messi remained in Martino's squad for the tournament, although he was later left on the bench in the opening match. won 2–1 against Chile on 6 June because of concerns about his ability to play. Although Messi was declared fit for a second game against Panama on 10 June, Martino left him on the bench once again; he only let him on in the 61st minute and then Messi scored a hat-trick in 19 minutes and the match ended in a 5-0 win for Argentina.
On 18 June 2016, in the Copa America quarter-final against Venezuela, Messi continued to shine as he assisted two goals and scored in a 4–1 win, which helped him equal Gabriel Batistuta's record for the number of goals. goals for the national team with 54 goals in official international matches. This record was quickly broken three days later when Messi scored in a 4–0 semi-final win over hosts the United States; he also contributed 2 assists in the match, Argentina entered the Copa America final for the 2nd time in a row and Messi is once again expected to continue to show the same high performance as the past matches. help the home team quench their thirst for titles.
Meeting Chile in the final on June 26, Argentina again let this opponent draw 0-0 after 120 minutes and won after a penalty shootout, resulting in Messi's third consecutive defeat in the tournament. major tournament finals against Argentina and his fourth overall. After the match, Messi, who missed a penalty in the final, announced his retirement from international football. Sources say other Argentine players - such as Sergio Agüero, Javier Mascherano, Gonzalo Higuaín, Lucas Biglia, Éver Banega, Ezequiel Lavezzi and Ángel Di María - could follow him in retirement. Chile coach Juan Antonio Pizzi said after the game, "My generation cannot compare him to Maradona for my generation, because Maradona made Argentine football great, but I think he is the bridge." best player in America this summer." Messi finished the tournament as the second-highest goalscorer, behind Chilean Eduardo Vargas, with five goals, and as the king of assists with four assists, and also won multiple Bridge awards. better player than any other player in the league. But in the end Messi missed out on the Golden Ball for best player, which went to Chile's Alexis Sánchez.
Don't go, Leo
Following Messi's announcement, a campaign began in Argentina for Messi to change his mind about ending his international football career. He was greeted by fans with slogans like "Don't go, Leo" as the team landed in Buenos Aires. Argentina's President Mauricio Macri urged Messi not to give up, saying: "We're lucky, it's one of life's joys, it's a gift from God to have the best player in the world in one in a country as passionate about football as we are... Lionel Messi is the best player we have in Argentina and we have to take care of him." The mayor of Buenos Aires, Horacio Rodríguez Larreta, unveiled a statue of Messi in the capital to convince him to reconsider his retirement from the national team. On social networks, NoTeVayasLeo has become a trending topic globally and even a playlist on Spotify. The campaign also continues in the streets and streets of the Argentine capital, with about 50,000 supporters set to arrive at the Obelisco de Buenos Aires on July 2, using the same slogan.
Back to the national team
Just a week after Messi announced his retirement from international career, Argentina's La Nación newspaper reports that he is considering returning to play for Argentina in the 2018 World Cup qualifiers in September. On August 12, it was confirmed that Messi had reversed his decision to part ways with the national team and that he had been included in the national team's squad for the upcoming 2018 World Cup qualifiers. On 1 September 2016, in his first comeback, he scored in a 1–0 home win over Uruguay in the 2018 World Cup qualifiers.
On 28 March 2017, Messi was suspended for 4 matches against Chile in a World Cup qualifier on 23 March 2017 for insulting the referee. He was also fined up to CHF 10,000. On 5 May 2017, Messi's ban as well as his CHF 10,000 fine were rescinded by FIFA after the Argentine Football Association appealed his suspension, which meant he could play. World Cup qualifiers for Argentina. However, he performed poorly in the key matches of the qualifying round, affecting Argentina's ranking. Argentina's position is struggling in the final match of the qualifying round when they are in 6th place in the standings while only the top 4 have won direct tickets to the World Cup and 5th place must play. -off, means that Argentina is at risk of missing the World Cup for the first time since 1970 if they do not win the last match on the field located 2850 meters above sea level of Ecuador.
However, on 10 October 2017, Messi shone at just the right moment in the final round of World Cup qualifiers when he scored a hat-trick to help Argentina beat Ecuador 3-1, thereby helping Argentina jump to the top. 3rd and win direct tickets to next year's World Cup. Reportedly, Argentina have not beaten Ecuador in Quito since 2001. Messi's third goal made him the top scorer in South American World Cup qualifying history with 21 goals, equaling with Luis Suárez of Uruguay, surpassing the previous record set by compatriot Hernán Crespo.
World Cup 2018
"The squad is the worst in their history. Even having the best player in the world was not capable of creating a competitive team. All the decline of recent times was hidden by this unrivalled genius [Messi]"
Argentina in the 2018 World Cup is the worst team in the history of Argentine football, even having the best player in the world can't make it competitive.
—Former Argentina national football team player Ossie Ardiles talks about the decline in the quality of Argentina's squad marked by Messi. With a shaky performance in the 2018 World Cup qualifiers, Argentina is forecast to face many difficulties when fall into Group D next to very difficult opponents such as Croatia, Nigeria and the Euro 2016 phenomenon Iceland. In a friendly match against Spain in March 2018, a match where Messi did not play due to injury, Argentina lost 1-6 miserably. After that match, Messi admitted: "At this moment, we are not among the contenders for the World Cup." Before Argentina's opening game, there were rumors about whether this would be Messi's last World Cup.
In the first round of the group stage, Lionel Messi missed a goal when his penalty failed in a 1-1 draw against Iceland. In the second match, Argentina lost again 0-3 to Croatia, exactly 2 days before his birthday, when Messi only touched the ball 49 times in the whole match. It was also the match where coach Jorge Sampaoli said of the lack of quality in the team surrounding Messi: "The reality of the Argentina squad has highlighted Messi's brilliance. We simply couldn't pass him to help him create situations where he often scores. We tried to give him the ball but the opponent worked too well to stop him from receiving the ball. Croatia midfielder Luka Modrić also said after the match, "Messi is a phenomenal player but he can't do everything alone" Earning only 1 point after 2 matches, Argentina is in danger of being eliminated. right from the group stage if they can't beat Nigeria in the last round.
In Argentina's final group stage match against Nigeria at Krestovsky Stadium, Saint Petersburg on June 26, Messi finally broke through in the World Cup when he scored the opening goal, contributing to a 2 victory. -1 of the home team. With this goal, Messi became the third Argentine player after Diego Maradona and Gabriel Batistuta to score at three different World Cups. At the same time, he had the 6th goal in the World Cups. The victory also helped the Argentina team to squeeze through the narrow door to get through the group stage, ranked second in the group behind Croatia.
In the round of 16 match against France (the team then won the tournament) on 30 June, Messi provided two assists for Gabriel Mercado and Sergio Agüero to score, but Argentina still received a defeat with a score of 3- 4 and had to carry his suitcase home on a day when young French star Kylian Mbappé played too brightly. With two assists in this match, Messi became the first player to assist in the last four World Cups. and also became the first player to provide two assists in a match for Argentina since Diego Maradona did the same against South Korea in 1986.
After an unsuccessful World Cup when he was eliminated in the round of 16, Lionel Messi informed interim coach Lionel Scaloni that he would not participate in any matches for Argentina until the end of 2018. Absence Messi's presence in the national team and his repeated failures to win titles with Argentina has fueled speculation in the media that Messi may retire from international career again.
Copa America 2019
At Copa America 2019, in the second round of Group B against Paraguay, Messi scored an equalizer from the penalty spot to help Argentina get a 1-1 draw against the opponent, thereby helping Argentina to hope to continue even though it was only a short time. get 1 point. The Argentina team then defeated the Asian representative Qatar with a score of 2-0, thereby finishing second in Group B with 4 points and reaching the quarter-finals against Venezuela. After Argentina's 0-2 defeat to hosts Brazil in the semi-finals on July 2, Messi criticized the referee officiating the match. In the third place match against Chile on 6 July, Messi set up Agüero to open the scoring from a free kick, giving Argentina a 2-1 aggregate win and bronze medal; however, he was sent off along with Gary Medel in the 37th minute of the game, after being involved in an altercation with the Chilean. After the match, Messi refused to accept the medal, and implied in a post-match interview that his comments about the referee after the semi-final against Brazil led to his being sent off during the match. third place with Chile. Messi later apologized for his comments, but was fined $1,500 and given a one-match ban by CONMEBOL, which prevented him from participating in the next World Cup qualifying match. of Argentina [264]. On August 2, Messi was officially banned from international competition by FIFA for three months and fined $50,000 by CONMEBOL for comments against the referee's decisions; The ban means he will miss Argentina's friendlies against Chile, Mexico and Germany in September and October.
Competition style
Messi is often compared to compatriot Diego Maradona due to the similarity in play and physique between the two. His modest height helps him have a lower center of gravity than many players, easily turning, changing direction and avoiding the opponent's ball. His short but powerful legs make it easy for Messi to accelerate and his fast stride gives him good control of the ball when dribbling at high speeds. Former Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola once remarked that: "Messi is the only player who runs faster with the ball than without the ball." Like Maradona, Messi is a left-footed player. He often uses the outside of his left foot when holding the ball, while using his inner cheek to finish, pass the ball and provide assists for teammates. Along with Portuguese striker Cristiano Ronaldo, Messi is considered one of the two best players in the world of his generation, and one of the best players of all time.
A technically skilled player, Messi often executes individual dribbles from the middle of the field or on the right flank towards goal, especially on Barça's counter-attacks. Despite this, he is also quite a team player, with good eyesight, creative passing and coordination, especially with teammates Xavi and Iniesta. In addition, he is a main free kick and often takes on the team's penalties. When it comes to his dribbling skills, Maradona once said: "The ball sticks to his feet; in my career I've watched many great players play but no one holds the ball as well as Messi. " Maradona also said that he believes Messi is the best player in the world right now.
Tactically, Messi is arranged to kick freely in the attack and sometimes play the role of regulating the game. Thanks to his ability to finish, quick, dribble, balance, position, observe and pass the ball, he can comfortably attack from the flanks or from the middle of the field. Starting out as a left winger and forward, he was later pushed to the right forward position by coach Frank Rijkaard, who realized that in this position Messi could cut the ball through. the defense got into the middle with ease and hit the ball with his left foot, rather than just passing the ball to his teammates. Under coach Guardiola, he played a lot as a virtual number 9. In this position, Messi seems to play like a central striker, a center forward, but he often moves deep to draw the opponent's defense, creating space for the wing strikers, the Other strikers and attacking midfielders move, so he can create opportunities for them, have space to dribble, score goals or organize attacks. In the blood of Argentina, Messi plays anywhere in the attack. Start as a striker or winger but can also play in lower positions, such as an attacking midfielder and an organizational midfielder under Maradona.
In short, Messi is a complete player. He is a good dribbler, a good playmaker, a good free kick, a good pace, a good scorer, a top-notch passing ability, a superior technique and above all, the ability to shine when his team is in trouble. .
Personal life
Messi was once said to have a crush on Macerena Lemos, who is also from his hometown of Rosario. He said he was introduced by the girl's father when he returned to Rosario for treatment a few days before the 2006 World Cup kicked off. He was also once said to be in a relationship with Argentine model, Luciana Salazar. In January 2009 he said on "Hat Trick Barça", a program of Canal 33: "I have a girlfriend and she now lives in Argentina, I am very comfortable and happy".[286 ] He was once spotted with the girl, Antonella Roccuzzo, at a festival in Sitges after the derby between Barcelona and Espanyol. Roccuzzo is a resident of Rosario, Santa Fe province, Argentina. They got married in 2017.
He has two cousins who are also digital shorts, namely Maxi, a winger who plays for Club Olimpia of Paraguay, and Emanuel Biancucchi, a midfielder who plays for Independiente F.B.C. of Paraguay.
In 2017, Messi cooperated with Phoenix Group and Mediapro Exhibitions to build Messi Experience Park in Nanjing city, Jiangsu province, China with an investment capital of up to 170 million euros. According to the design, the total area of the land where Messi Experience Park is located is about 80,000m2 and is divided into 3 parts. In addition to the area used for storage (25,000m2), Messi Experience Park also has an indoor area for visitors to visit and entertain about 46,000m2 and a campus of 12,000m2. Not only stopping at the nature of a mere park, the park associated with Messi's name is also clearly oriented to become an entertainment complex serving the diverse needs of visitors such as: play, eat, relax.
Charity
In 2007, Messi founded the Leo Messi Foundation, a charity that supports vulnerable children's access to education and healthcare. In an interview with fans, Messi said: "Becoming a little bit famous gives me the opportunity to help those who really need help, especially children." In response to Messi's own childhood medical difficulties, the Leo Messi Foundation supports Argentine children diagnosed with illness, enabling them to receive treatment in Spain including travel expenses, hospital fees and medical rehabilitation costs. Messi's foundation is supported by his own fundraising and since then, he has been involved in advertising for Herbalife's dairy products. This is a company originating from the United States, specializing in the production of nutritious dairy products with the function of weight gain, weight loss, protein supplement...
On 11 March 2010, Messi was selected as a UNICEF goodwill ambassador. Messi's UNICEF ambassador activities in support of children's rights. Messi also receives support from FC Barcelona, a club with close ties to UNICEF.
In 2017, in addition to a large amount of support, Messi also used his own brand to call for help from sponsors as well as fans to build Sant Joan de Deu hospital in Barcelona into a city. The most modern oncology hospital in the world.
The media
In 2009, he was chosen as the promotional face for the game Pro Evolution Soccer, and continued to promote the game with Fernando Torres the following year. Messi is sponsored by German sports company Adidas and appears in their TV commercials.
In March 2010, France Football magazine ranked Messi at the top of the list of the richest players in the world, with £29.6 million in total income from salaries, bonuses and off-field sources. Forbes ranked him as the highest paid athlete in the world in 2019.
In June 2010, Messi signed a 3-year contract with Herbalife to support the Leo Messi Foundation.
His main sponsor since 2006 is the sportswear company Adidas. Since 2008, he has owned a collection of Adidas F50 shoes and in 2015 he became the first footballer to receive Adidas shoes bearing his own name, the Adidas Messi. Since 2017, Messi has been using Adidas' new Nemeziz shoe. Since the beginning of his career, he has mainly signed sponsorship deals with companies that use sports-oriented marketing, such as Adidas, Pepsi and Konami. From 2010 on, with his growing track record on the pitch, his marketing appeal continued to expand, leading to long-term endorsement deals with luxury brands such as Dolce & Gabbana and Audemars Piguet. Messi is also a global brand ambassador for Gillette, Turkish Airlines, Ooredoo and Tata Motors, among others. In addition, Messi is the face of Konami's Pro Evolution Soccer series of football video games, appearing on the cover of PES 2009, PES 2010, PES 2011 and PES 2020. He was later signed with Konami's rival company is EA Sports to become the face of the FIFA soccer game series, from which he appeared on the cover of four consecutive FIFA editions from FIFA 13 to FIFA 16.
He has also twice been included in the Time 100 list in 2011 and 2012, the list of the 100 most influential people in the world published annually by Time Magazine.
Also in April 2011, Messi opened an account on Facebook and within a few hours, his account had more than 6 million followers and as of October 2017 had 89,401,860 "Likes". (Messi's Facebook).
In May 2012, former Real Madrid player Royston Drenthe said in an interview with Dutch magazine Helden that Lionel Messi called him "negro" several times during his time in the West. Spain.[318] In response to the accusations, Barcelona said: "Messi has always shown absolute respect for his opponents, a fact that has been recognized many times by his teammates.
Not paying taxes
In June 2013, Lionel Messi was accused by the tax authority of the city of Barcelona of evading 4 million euros in taxes on commercial income between 2006 and 2009. Messi subsequently paid over 5 million Euros (including taxes and late penalties). In October 2013, two senior officers of the Spanish tax office announced in the Gava district court that Lionel Messi did not engage in suspected tax fraud. Messi is considered to be unaware of his violation and the person who will be primarily responsible in this case is his father, who is also the financial manager on his behalf. Lionel Messi's father, Jorge Horacio Messi, later admitted that Lionel Messi had always known only football, and that his fault was only loose management and too trusting of relatives in the financial field.
In July 2016, during the trial at the Gava district court, Barcelona, Messi was sentenced to 21 months in prison for evading 4.1 million euros in taxes between 2007 and 2009. Mr. Jorge Horacio Messi, the superstar's father This football must also receive the same penalty. During the trial, prosecutors presented evidence that the Messi family evaded income tax in Spain by funneling the money into ghost companies set up in Uruguay and Belize - places considered to be tax haven. In addition to the prison sentence, Messi also had to pay an administrative fine of 2 million euros and his father to pay a fine of 1.5 million euros. Because the sentence is for a term of less than two years and is not a criminal sentence, the father and son can receive a probationary prison sentence, according to Spanish law. In addition, Messi's father and son can also file an appeal to the supreme court.
Get married
On June 30, 2017, Messi married Antonella Roccuzzo. Messi's wedding was held at the 5-star hotel complex City Center Rosario. Leo Messi met his girlfriend Antonella Roccuzzo when he was just 5 years old, before going public since 2009. The two have three sons together: Thiago (2012), Mateo (2015) and Ciro (2018). .
Up to 400 police were mobilized to protect the security of Leo Messi's wedding. Thousands of Argentina fans and many Messi fans around the world flocked to Rosario to congratulate. Messi's marriage event had the presence of 260 guests, many famous stars such as Sergio Busquets, Jordi Alba, Carles Puyol, Cesc Fabregas, Xavi, Luis Suarez, Samuel Eto'o... Messi did not invite his old teacher Luis Enrique and his assistant Juan Carlos Unzue. In addition, no member of the Barca Board of Directors received the card.
After the party, there was still a lot of food and drink left unused. Instead of going to waste, Leo Messi decided to donate to the Rosario Food Bank for charity.
Title
Barcelona
La Liga (10): 2004–05, 2005–06, 2008–09, 2009–10, 2010–11, 2012–13, 2014-15, 2015-16, 2017-18, 2018-19,
· King's Cup (6): 2008–09, 2011–12, 2014-15, 2015-16, 2016-17, 2017-18
· Spanish Super Cup (8): 2005, 2006, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2016, 2018
UEFA Champions League (4): 2005–06, 2008–09, 2010–11, 2014–15
· European Super Cup (3): 2009, 2011, 2015.
· FIFA Club World Cup (3): 2009., 2011, 2015.
Argentina
· Olympic gold medal: 2008
· U-20 World Cup: 2005
Runner-up:
· World Cup: 2014
· Copa America: 2007, 2015, 2016
Grade 3:
· South American Youth Football Championship: 2005
· Copa America: 2019
Personal
World
FIFA Golden Ball/European Ballon d'Or (6): 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2015, 2019
FIFA Player of the Year (1): 2009.
· The Best FIFA Men's Players (After splitting from Ballon d'Or): 1 (2019)
FIFA World Cup 2014 Golden Ball
· King of the FIFA World Cup 2018
FIFA Club World Cup Golden Ball (2): 2009, 2011.
FIFA Club World Cup Silver Ball: 2015
FIFA Club World Cup Final Player of the Year (2): 2009, 2011.
· Top scorer FIFA Club World Cup: 2011
· South American Cup Player of the Year: 2015
· Player with the most assists in the South American Cup: 2011, 2015, 2016
· Copa América Best Goal: 2007
· South American Cup Best Young Player (1): 2007.
· Best Player of the World Under-20 Football Championship (1): 2005.
· Top scorer of the FIFA U20 World Cup (1): 2005.
· IFFHS international top scorer (2): 2011, 2012.
FIFA/FIFPro World XI (12): 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018
· Young Player of the Year (FIFPro) (3): 2006, 2007, 2008.
Olimpia de Plata (Best Argentinian Player): 2005, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2015, 2016, 2017
· Olimpia de Oro (Typical Argentine sports figure): 2011
· AFA Team of All Time (published 2015)
FIFA World Cup Team of the Year: 2014
Copa América Team of the Year: 2007, 2011, 2015, 2016
· FIFPro Young World Player of the Year: 2006, 2007, 2008
· Golden Boy (Young European Footballer of the Year): 2005
· IFFHS World's Best Playmaker: 2015, 2016, 2017
· AFA Team of All Time (published 2015)
Europe
European Golden Shoe (6): 2010, 2012, 2013, 2017, 2018, 2019.
UEFA European Player of the Year (2): 2011, 2015
UEFA Player of the Year (1): 2009.
UEFA Best Striker of the Year: 2009
Team of the Year (UEFA) (10): 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018.
UEFA Champions League Best Striker (1): 2009.
· UEFA Champions League top scorer (6): 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2015, 2019.
· King of the UEFA Champions League (2): 2012, 2015.
UEFA Champions League Final Player of the Year (1): 2011.
UEFA Goal of the Year: 2007
UEFA Goal of the Season: 2014–15, 2015–16
Spain
La Liga Player of the Season (7): 2008-09, 2009-10, 2010-11, 2011-12, 2012-13, 2014-15, 2017-18
Striker of the Season (7): 2008-09, 2009-10, 2010-11, 2011-12, 2012-13, 2014-15, 2015-16.
La Liga Best Latin American Player (5): 2007, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012.
· Pichichi Cup (6): 2010, 2012, 2013, 2017, 2018, 2019
· Top scorer of the King's Cup (5): 2008–09, 2010–11, 2013–14, 2015–16, 2016–17
La Liga Player of the Month: January 2016, April 2017, April 2018, September 2018, March 2019
· La Liga Team of the Season: 2014–15, 2015–16
UEFA La Liga Team of The Season: 2015–16, 2016–17
Other awards
· Onze d'Or (4): 2009, 2011, 2012, 2018.
· Young Player of the Year (World Soccer magazine) (3): 2006, 2007, 2008.
· Player of the Year (World Soccer magazine) (3): 2009, 2011, 2012.
· Greatest XI of all time (World Soccer magazine) (Greatest XI of all time): 2013.
Team of the Year (ESM) (7): 2006, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013.
Alfredo Di Stéfano Cup (Marca) (3): 2009, 2010, 2011.
· Marca Legend Award (1): 2009.
La Liga Best Foreign Player (Don Balón) (3): 2007, 2009, 2010.
Bravo Award (1): 2007.
· Golden Boy Award (Tuttosport) (1): 2005.
· ESPY Award (1): 2012.
· Player of the Year (Goal.com) (3): 2009, 2011, 2013.
· Champion of Champions (L'Équipe) (L'Équipe Champion of Champions): 2011.
· El Pais (4): 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012.
· Creu de Sant Jordi: 2019
Record
As of December 8, 2019.
World
Player with the most Ballon d'Or awards (including FIFA merger): 6
Player with the most FIFA Ballon d'Or awards: 4
The Best FiFA Men's Players of the Year Player (Including Ballon d'Or Consolidation): 6
· Guinness World Record for most goals scored in 1 year: 91 goals
· Most international goals scored in 1 year (2012): 25 goals (shared with Vivian Woodward and Cristiano Ronaldo)
Most consecutive goalscorers in a tournament: 21 matches (33 goals)
Youngest only player to win 2 and 3 times and 4 times FIFA Ballon d'Or: at 23 and 24 and 25 years old
Player with the most FIFA Club World Cup Golden Ball awards: 2 times
Most goals scored in a club season: 73 goals in 2011–12
· Player with the most appearances in the FIFPro World XI XI: 12 (2007–2018) (shared with Cristiano Ronaldo)
continents
Most goals scored in a season (club): 73 goals in 2011-12[328]
· Most goals scored in a calendar year (club): 79 goals in 2012
Player with the most European Golden Boots: 6 times.
Most hat-tricks in UEFA Champions League: 8 hat-tricks (shared with Cristiano Ronaldo)
· Most goals scored in 1 UEFA Champions League match: 5 goals
Most goals scored in the UEFA Champions League group stage: 65 goals
European Super Cup top scorer: 3 goals (together with Arie Haan, Oleg Blokhin, Gerd Müller, Rob Rensenbrink, François Van der Elst, Terry McDermott, and Radamel Falcao)
Youngest player to reach 100 UEFA Champions League appearances: 28 years and 84 days in 2015
Player with the most assists in Copa América: 11 assists
· Top scorer in World Cup qualifying South America: 21 goals (shared with Luis Suárez)
Spain
Most goals scored in a La Liga season: 50 goals
Most consecutive La Liga goalscorers: 21 matches (33 goals)
Most hat-tricks in a La Liga season: 8 hat-tricks (shared with Cristiano Ronaldo)
· Player to score against most La Liga teams in a season: 19 teams in 2012-13 season (shared with Ronaldo and Cristiano Ronaldo)
Most hat-tricks in El Clásico matches: 2ico
Most goals scored in the Spanish Super Cup: 13 goals
· Top scorer in La Liga history: 431 goals
Player with the most times La Liga Top Scorer (Pichichi) title: 6 times
· Player with the most assists in La Liga: 166 times
Youngest player to reach 200 goals in La Liga: 25 years old
The first player to reach 300 goals in La Liga
First and only player to reach 350 goals in La Liga
First and only player to reach 400 goals in La Liga
· The player who has scored against the most teams in La Liga history: 36 different teams.
Player with most wins in La Liga: 339 matches
Most hat-tricks in La Liga: 35 hat-tricks
Barcelona
Most goals scored in official club competitions: 617 goals
· Top goalscorer in all competitions (including friendlies) for the club: 652 goals
· Top goalscorer in La Liga: 431 goals
Most hat-tricks in official club competitions: 45 hat-tricks
Most goals scored from penalties in La Liga: 51 goals
· Most goals scored in El Clásico matches: 26 goals
· Top scorer in the Catalan derby: 28 goals
· The player who scores the most goals from a free kick for the club; 41 tables
Most goals scored in the Champions League for the club: 114 goals
Player with the most trophies with the club: 34 trophies
Argentina
· Player with the most goals for the Argentina national football team: 70 goals
· Top scorer for Argentina team in a calendar year: 12 goals in 2012 (shared with Gabriel Batistuta)
The only Argentine player to score in every country CONMEBOL
Youngest player to reach 100 matches for the CONMEBOL National team: 27 years 361 days in 2015
Most Argentinian Player of the Year Award: 11 times
Youngest player to play for Argentina at the FIFA World Cup: 18 years, 357 days in 2006
Youngest player to score for Argentina at a World Cup: 18 years, 357 days in 2006
