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Being one of the greatest footballers of all-time isn't easy. Ask Lionel Messi.
Your every performance is keenly observed and dissected, your form is always a topic of discussion, and your future, many a time, is a subject of intense speculation.
Lionel Messi bared it all during 17 illustrious years at Barcelona, and much of the same is expected to follow at Paris Saint-Germain.
Despite everything he's accomplished, there were also times when La Pulga was underestimated or written off, for whatever reason. But in most instances, he spectacularly hit back with a heroic performance.
Here, we look back at the
5 times Lionel Messi was grossly underestimated but responded spectacularly
#5 Copa America 2021
While Argentina were among the favorites, as usual, at Copa America 2021, no one really expected them to go all the way, especially after the hosting venues were shifted back to Brazil following a COVID-19 scare in the country.
Lionel Messi, having lost four major international finals, was obviously looking to finally end the drought but not many expected him to, given Seleccao's incredible form going into the tournament.
However, the Argentine captain was at the peak of his powers throughout the campaign and dragged his side to their first international trophy in 28 years, and his first too, starring in every game leading up to the finals.
He finished with four goals (joint-most) and five assists (the highest), winning the Golden Boot, the Golden Ball and a place in the best team of the tournament too.
He finally has that particular monkey off his back.
#4 Versus Real Madrid (2006/07 La Liga)
During the 2006/07 season, Messi was just into his second full-season with Barcelona, although his eye-catching performances had everyone taking notice.
But what he did in El Clasico in March 2007 was truly spectacular. No one saw that coming.
Only 19 at the time, La Pulga stole the show with a superb hat-trick against Real Madrid, his first for Barcelona, helping the Catalans secure a point in a thrilling 3-3 draw at the Camp Nou.
In just one night, Messi went from being a promising young talent to a potential superstar, and the rest, as we all know, is history.
#3 Versus Real Madrid (2016/17 La Liga)
El Clasico was among those fixtures that Lionel Messi truly enjoyed playing in (and dominating), which explains why there's another instance of him from that revered rivalry here.
Back in April 2017, Real Madrid and Barcelona were scheduled to play against each other at the Santiago Bernabeu, but it came on the back of contrasting results for the sides in Europe.
Cristiano Ronaldo scored a hat-trick against Bayern Munich to propel Los Blancos into the semi-finals of the UEFA Champions League again, while Lionel Messi and co. couldn't recover from a 3-0 deficit at the hands of Juventus, bowing out of the competition following a goalless stalemate at the Camp Nou.
Going into the weekend's top-billed fixture, the hosts were expected to run over their desolate rivals too, but Lionel Messi had other plans.
He scored a fabulous opening goal for the visitors and assisted Ivan Rakitic for their second before snatching a late victory in extra-time with an outrageous first-time finish beyond Keylor Navas.
It sparked the now iconic shirt celebration as Lionel Messi showed the Bernabeu crowd his jersey, and why it's never okay to underestimate him.
#2 Versus Bayern Munich (2014/15 UEFA Champions League)
Barcelona's fifth UEFA Champions League triumph in 2015 was the result of a superb collective effort rather than an individual's talismanship.
Yet, in the semi-finals against Bayern Munich, the odds were firmly stacked against them.
Memories of the 7-0 shellacking were still fresh, while Lionel Messi hadn't scored in the knockout stages until this game.
However, the prolific number 10 seemed to have been spurred on by the occasion (and by Manuel Neuer's pre-match comments about who the real 'boss' is) and took the Bavarians to cleaners all by himself.
He netted two goals, the second of which left the world letting out a collective gasp (and Neuer eating grass) before providing a beautiful assist for Neymar as Barcelona crushed their Bundesliga counterparts.
Moral of the story? Never ever challenge Lionel Messi. He's the real boss.
#1 Versus Ecuador (2018 FIFA World Cup qualifier)
Going into the final game of the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifiers of the CONMEBOL zone, there was a real possibility that Argentina were going to miss the Russian showpiece.
Sixth in the table, with only 25 points from 17 games, the Sky Blues were facing a daunting trip to Ecuador, where they hadn't won in a long time.
The prospect of watching a World Cup without Lionel Messi frightened his fans, while those in the Cristiano Ronaldo camp had their knives drawn out.
However, undeterred by the occasion, the Barcelona star rose to the challenge, netting an incredible hat-trick to help secure a comeback victory and guide his nation into the World Cup finals.
Messi's critics either fell silent or were left awe-inspired by his heroics, as La Pulga once again reminded everyone why he's considered to be one of the greatest footballein history.
