5 times stars humiliated great goalkeepers

#4 Messi dinks Neuer

Messi getting the better of Neuer

Right now there aren’t many better goalkeepers in the world than Germany and Bayern Munich’s Manuel Neuer, who’s recognised for his skills not only in keeping the ball out of the net, but also for being so useful with his feet that he’s able to start attacking moves from his own penalty box, a “sweeper-keeper” if you will. It’s quite poetic then that the man to humiliate him was none other than arguably the best player in the world right now – step forward Lionel Messi.

The occasion could hardly have been much bigger – the first leg of the Champions League semi-finals in 2014/15, it was Pep Guardiola’s big return to the Nou Camp to see his Bayern side face off with his old one, Barcelona. After the first half ended 0-0, something had to give and unsurprisingly, it was Messi who provided the inspiration. After scoring an excellent first goal, Messi then painfully humiliated Neuer – swivelling his way past Jerome Boateng before gently dinking the ball over the onrushing keeper, leaving him in a crumpled heap on the ground.

Neuer actually had a great display, making plenty of crucial saves although eventually, the game ended 3-0 to Barcelona, effectively killing the tie before the second leg, but it was Messi’s second goal that stood out in everyone’s mind and reduced the best keeper in the world into a flailing mess for a few seconds. Not that Neuer could feel bad in the end – after all, it’s hard to name a top keeper who hasn’t been humiliated by Messi in the past decade.