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Brazillian legend Pele has criticized five-time Ballon d'Or winner Lionel Messi and accused him of having only "one skill ".The three-time FIFA World Cup winner said the Barcelona superstar cannot be compared to him because Messi isn't able to use both feet effectively and is not good in the air. His exact words were:
"How can you make a comparison between a guy who heads the ball well, shoots with the left, shoots with the right and another who only shoots with one leg, only has one skill and doesn't head the ball well? How can you compare? To compare with Pele, it has to be someone who shoots well with the left, shoots well with the right and scores headers."
It is unlikely that his opinion is held by the majority. While it is true that Messi doesn't score many goals with his head or with his right foot. branding him incapable is absurd. After all, we have seen him score some fabulous goals including the header against Manchester United in the Champions League Final. Also, Messi's so-called "one skill" has made him the all-time La Liga top scorer and second highest Champions League top scorer.
Taking a look at Messi's first 100 goals in the Champions League, we can see that he has scored 4 header goals and 14 goals with his weak foot. So Messi may be little weak with headers and have a "weak foot", but when you have a left foot as good as his, do you really need anything else? He is also a conductor and creator, boasting the record for the most assists in La Liga history.
Pele is undeniably a legend of the game but this is a view that very few will agree with. Messi along with Ronaldo have been the standout players of this generation and can lay claim to the greatest player a mantle held by Pele and Maradona.
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