5 moments that make Lionel Messi the most impactful player in El Clasico history 

#4 A phone call that redefined the false 9 position - May 2, 2009

Messi decimated Real Madrid as a false 9

In 2009, Messi was widely regarded as the best player in the world and Barcelona were on their way to rewriting the history books and reinventing what was previously thought unattainable.

Under the tutelage of Pep Guardiola, the Argentine talisman was having his best season to that point, functioning primarily on the wing, where his superior dribbling and shooting enabled him to cut inside and wreck havoc.

It was with this in mind that the world anticipated El Clasico in early May 2009 but a phone call late on the eve of the fixture significantly altered the Blaugrana's tactics.

Reports that have since been confirmed by Messi himself revealed that Guardiola called his star player and told him that Madrid's deep-lying defenders left a large pocket of space between the defensive line and midfield and that he would want his number 10 to drop deep and exploit this space.

Real Madrid came into the fixture having won 18 of their last 19 league games and with four points separating them from the top, anything other than a victory would have derailed their quest for a third consecutive league title.

Few minutes into the fixture, Guardiola gave the signal and Messi swapped roles with Samuel Eto'o, confusing the Real defenders and from his position deep in midfield, Messi drew the centre-backs out, leaving plenty of space for his teammates to exploit.

This was a tactically ingenious move by Guardiola and arguably the best Clasico display by Messi, with the Rosario native scoring a brace in what was a comprehensive 6-2 victory.

While other players might have been deployed in the role before, it was Messi's spectacular performance in this match that brought the false nine role into mainstream prominence and laid the template for his evolution into a wandering forward.

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