No one doubts that Messi is the brightest footballer, who rightly claims (or does everyone already agree with this?) The title of the strongest in the history of the game. However, he also had high and more or less regular seasons in his career. Of course, by the standards of his transcendental level, almost divine.
In the Spanish Championship, the Argentine has nine seasons in which he has scored 30 or more goals, three of them with 40+ goals each. The most outstanding seasons were 2011/12, 2012/13 and 2014/2015. In the first case, his average performance in the club’s matches, but not only in the league, but in all tournaments, was 1.21 goals, in the second -1.2 and in the third -1, 02.
Right now at Inter Miami Messi has 11 goals scored in nine games played, which gives us an average performance of 1.22. And this is the best figure in Leo’s career. In addition, one should definitely pay attention to the fact that not a single penalty was scored on his account in regular time matches. And this is no coincidence: the Argentine wizard could have already come close to the point twice, but both times the shot was taken by the club’s regular penalty taker, Josef Martinez.
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It is generally accepted that if a player leaves Europe, it means the end of a significant part of his career. Saudi Arabia, MLS and, previously, China – all these are options for making money and nothing more. Footballers, just like sports shift workers, travel to exotic countries, where they not only shine on the pitches, but also shine with a big name. And no more.
For example, Cristiano Ronaldo in his first season with Al-Nasr scored 14 goals in 19 games, but only nine, excluding penalties. And the current owner of the Ballon d’Or, Karim Benzema, after moving to Al-Ittihad, has so far only scored one ball in three matches of the Saudi Arabian Championship. The numbers eloquently show that even these stars are either not specially designed or simply no longer capable of doing anything due to age.
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And how Messi’s star shines brightly in this contrast. He moves the ball forward, makes great combinations, scores great goals, distributes filigree passes, just elegant. That is why so much attention is paid to his performance in the United States. Also, you have to understand the difference between sports in North America and what we see in Europe. It’s all about putting accents: in the Old World, in the game itself, in the New, in the program. That’s why Lionel’s transition was staged so magnificently: every minute a dozen cameras follow him on the pitch, and each of his actual actions is presented as something extraordinary.
But Messi himself gives many reasons to admire him. The only thing that is worth it is the record average performance, which we talked about a little earlier. Of course, scoring in MLS is somewhat easier than in the Example or in the Champions League, but one must not forget about a respectable age by sports standards.
The most important thing is that Leo managed to prove the main thing: he came to play, not to serve the number, filling his pockets with money. For this reason alone, fans in North America are very lucky to see this soccer genius live.
