As recent as 2010, depending on who you are asking, the title of the ultimate king of football (soccer) could have belonged to anyone. For some, it was the eternal Brazilian Pele, to others, the mercurial Diego Maradona was unrivaled. Some even think Alfredo Di Stefano should be the man considered the greatest soccer player ever.
In truth, all the advocates of the names mentioned above have some valid points to back the claims of their favorites being the greatest ever. However, one would agree that the deserving holder of such a title should be a name that nearly everyone would agree with. While critics and football fans continue to wait for a unifying name, and a few people were already giving up that such an individual would not arrive, Lionel Andres Messi enters.
Since his emergence, Lionel Messi’s name has been sung in so many stadiums of the world, and most times it has been in elation. This maestro of the game has had what we would call an illustrious career that spanned over two decades. He is a player that we would say has defied the odds and set the bar so high it would need a real force of nature to meet up with his achievements. But, you may ask, what are the moments that cemented his claim as the greatest ever? We highlight the moments that cemented his status as the best ever in this article.
1. Winning a Record-breaking 8th Ballon D'Or (2023)
The Ballon D’Or is regarded as the best individual award in football. So when Lionel Messi won his eighth Ballon D’Or award and became the player with the most gongs in history, the debate of who is the greatest ends.
After many years of sharing the scene with Cristiano Ronaldo, Messi finally put a long distance between him and the Portuguese with his 8th win. Many experts and commentators believe no one will be able to achieve such a feat again in the next 200 years.
2. Breaking Pele's All-time Club Goals Record (2020)
Another moment that sealed Messi’s fate as the greatest of all time was when he scored his 644th goal for Barcelona in 2020. This feat broke Pele’s record of 643 club goals, which the Brazilian set at Santos. For context, Pele’s record has been standing for over 46 years, but it required the genius of Messi to beat the record.
3. Breaking Gerd Muller's Record for Most Goals in a Calendar Year (2012)
They don’t call Messi the GOAT just for fun. This guy was designed to break and set records, and this next one is extraordinary. In 2012, Lionel Messi set a wild goal record which saw him score a staggering 91 goals in a calendar year to surpass Gerd Muller’s 40 year-old record of scoring 85 goals in a calendar year.
A lot of pundits felt it would take a miracle to break the record going by the competitive nature of modern football. But it seems they have forgotten about Messi; nothing is beyond this guy. The little magician scored 79 goals for Barcelona and 12 goals for the Argentine national team between January 1 and December 31, 2012. That’s equivalent to scoring an average of 1.32 goals per game in 69 games. Wild! We wonder how long it would take before anyone can equal or topple this record.
4. Winning the 2022 World Cup
For many years, the only title that eluded Messi was the FIFA World Cup. Many believe not winning the magnificent trophy may put a dent on his claim to being the greatest ever. Well, never doubt Messi. He went on to win this last title in style to basically end the debate of who is the greatest ever.
Messi was the best player in Qatar from the moment the whistle was blown and he went on to claim the big title after delivering a performance to remember in the final against defending champions, France. The Argentine scored two goals and scored one of the decisive penalties in the shootout to deliver the most prestigious football tournament to Argentina, cementing his status as the GOAT and moving ahead of Pele and Maradona in the all time rankings.
Conclusion
We believe that every true football fan must applaud the genius of Lionel Messi. This man has over the years proved doubters wrong with his excellent performances and dedication. He has rewritten the rules, broken long-standing records and set new ones. There's no doubt that he is the greatest ever and his name will be sung in the football hall of fame as long as the sun remains.