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Lionel Messi has enjoyed a lot of success throughout his career. He has earned a lot of trophies and personal accolades over the last decade and a half playing as a forward for Barcelona. In recent years he has started dropping deeper on the pitch and has excelled as a makeshift midfielder as well.
Over the years he has delivered results in every role he was tasked with by his managers. Be it as a winger in the early years or as one of the greatest false No.9s under Pep Guardiola or in a hybrid No.10 role under Luis Enrique.
Fast forward to this day and we find that club is reliant on its talisman to both create and score goals. Lionel Messi's passing is an underrated part of his genius and with Barcelona having a void in the midfield since Xavi and Iniesta's departures here we discuss:
5 reasons why Lionel Messi should play in midfield for Barcelona
#5 Lack of creativity in the midfield at Barcelona currently
There was a time when Barcelona boasted of the best midfield in the world. Pass masters Xavi and Andres Iniesta shouldered the lion's share of responsibility as the creative force in the team.
It has become evident that since the departure of two of the best midfielders of all-time the club has relied heavily on their front three (led by Lionel Messi) to both create and score the goals.
Players such as Arthur Melo, Philippe Coutinho, Paulinho, Ivan Rakitic, Arturo Vidal were brought in to fill in the void but faced an impossible task ahead of them and came up short.
Though the prospect of Coutinho and Miralem Pjanic in midfield this season might look promising, both of them have just come into the squad and it still needs to be figured out where they fit in.
Lionel Messi could fit very well in a 4-2-3-1 formation as the right-sided attacking midfielder and that might allow him to cut in and score some goals as well.
#4 Luis Suarez's departure means Barcelona need to create more chances
Barcelona recently parted ways with their star forward Luis Suarez, with the Uruguayan joining La Liga rivals Atletico Madrid in a two-year deal. With one of the best No.9s of our generation departing Camp Nou what it means for the club is that without Suarez's instincts in the penalty box, they'll need to be a lot more creative this season than they have been in recent memory.
Lionel Messi led the assists charts last season and racked up a league record 21 assists. He has always been involved in the build-up play for the Catalans but with the loss of their target man, their best bet is to hope that the six-time Ballon d'Or winner creates even more chances.
Naturally, there is no Barcelona player more suited to the role of stretching the opposition defence thin and creating chances than Lionel Messi. If Ronald Koeman starts him as an attacking midfielder and gives him the freedom to operate on the pitch, he can yet again deliver goals and assists for Barcelona.
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#3 He can create a lot of chances in tandem with Coutinho
For long Lionel Messi has been the wellspring of goals for Barcelona, both in terms of creating and scoring them. Though he had a wonderful partner in attack in Suarez, he didn't have a deputy he could count upon in midfield.
Philippe Coutinho has returned from his fairly successful loan spell at Bayern Munich and he brings in a lot of quality, especially starting as a left-winger or in a No.10 role.
If Koeman opts for a 4-2-3-1 system, with Messi on the right of the three-man midfield and Coutinho in the No.10 role, it will provide the duo with a chance to play to their strengths.
Lionel Messi has struggled in central positions as he is usually swarmed by opposition players every time he collects the ball there, but the availability of a specialist like Coutinho there will mean that Messi is free to dictate play from the right flank.
#2 Advancing age and injury issues
Lionel Messi has maintained a very high level of fitness throughout his career and has not had many long injury breaks. Playing as a right sided forward on the pitch can be demanding as it involves running back and forth from the right-wing to the midfield. Messi who turned 33 this June, can no longer keep running between the final and second third.
He needs to be utilized in a position that adds the maximum value to his side and as we have seen over the last couple of seasons he is more comfortable in a slightly deeper position. When asked about whether he sees himself as a midfielder in an interview last year, he conceded that he likes to drop deeper and create chances from midfield. He said:
"Now I usually drop myself deeper [on the pitch] to receive and be in contact with the ball and the midfield. I don't know what will happen in the future."
Lionel Messi has never been a traditional striker and now does not have the engine to operate as an effective false No.9. However, his dribbling skills and vision are still top-notch.
Vision is one of the few football skills that does not diminish with age and playing in the midfield as a No.10 will allow Lionel Messi to make the most of his current abilities without putting a strain on himself.
#1 Lionel Messi in midfield will allow Ansu Fati and Ousmane Dembélé to shine
Barcelona are without a proven striker at the moment and it seems Antoine Griezmann might be selected to play the role of the central striker by Koeman going forward.
With a three-man midfield behind the lone striker, where Lionel Messi takes the position on the right and Coutinho starts in the middle, the position on the left will be up for grabs. The two players who will benefit from Messi's move to the midfield and the subsequent change in the formation are Ansu Fati, who has been promoted to the first team after a great debut season and Ousmane Dembélé, who is looking fully fit after a long time.
The wingers can provide a lot of width going forward and Lionel Messi, who is known to provide sweet passes in the final third, can set them up perfectly in the box for scoring opportunities.
It is time for the youngsters in the squad to step up and show their true potential and with the kind of talent Fati and Dembélé possess, having Lionel Messi pulling the string in midfield will allow them to wreak havoc in the final third with their pace.
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