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Truly, talent is talent and class is class. When it comes to mesmerizing football fans with unbelievable skills and magical abilities, no one does it better than Lionel Messi. Small but mighty, short yet indispensable, the Argentine is arguably one of the greatest players to ever step on the football pitch.
Ever since he broke unto the stage over a decade ago, the playmaker has remained a constant influence on the game. Five Ballon d'Or awards, 4 European Golden Shoes and 4 Champions League trophies are not enough to appreciate his incredible talent.
Entertaining football fans with his incredible knack and leading his club from glory to glory, the Barca maestro is truly second to none in the game. Leo has been the most complete, most consistent and most dominant player for the past 10 seasons. His fantastic talent is the reason why millions of football fans turn up to watch the beautiful game.
This season is another highlight in the Argentine's career. He has taken his game to a new dimension, helping Barcelona in overturning a nightmare to reach a fantastic height that no one could have imagined. His incredible efforts are why the Blaugrana have won the La Liga and the Copa Del Rey
Therefore, let us look at 5 matches where the Argentine has been at his obvious best this season:
#5. Real Madrid vs Barcelona (December 23, 2017)
After earlier humiliating Barcelona 5-1 in the Spanish Super Cup, Real Madrid welcomed the Catalans to the Santiago Bernabeu for their first meeting of the campaign. This presented Lionel Messi and Barcelona the ultimate chance to avenge the initial defeat they suffered at the hands of the Los Blancos.
The hosts started well, attacking desperately and pressing intensely. However, it didn't take long before Messi began threatening their defense. The Argentine first clipped a pass over the top and Paulinho met it with an awesome volley which Navas saved narrowly with his finger-tip. Paulinho received another cross from the playmaker but his header was pushed away by the goalkeeper, forcing the match to a goalless first half.
Shortly after the restart, Luis Suarez put the Blaugrana ahead. Real Madrid players were busy man-marking Messi and this afforded the Uruguayan some space on the left. Sergi Roberto found the striker with a nice pass and he finished it perfectly to earn his team a vital lead.
In the 63rd minute, Real Madrid defender, Dani Carvajal was sent off by the referee after he handled the ball on the goal line. The decision also attracted a penalty kick which the Mercurial Argentine stepped up and converted, beating the goalkeeper with a nice shot that crashed into the roof of the net.
Leo got involved again in the closing stages of the game. He dribbled and manipulated his way through the right before sending a precise pass to Aleix Vidal at the edge of the box. The defender sent a thunderous shot into the net to conclude a perfect revenge at the Santiago Bernabeu.
#4. Barcelona vs Juventus (September 12, 2017)
Barcelona's Champions League mission kicked-off in bright colors this season. Special thanks to Lionel Messi who gave the Blaugrana a perfect start, leading them to their first European victory of the campaign.
The Catalans welcomed Italian champions Juventus FC to the Camp Nou for their first fixture in the competition this season. Ahead of the game, the popular talk in the media was Leo's struggle in front of Gigi Buffon, the Argentine was yet to score against the legendary goalkeeper despite facing him a couple of times.
The first 30 minutes of the game witnessed several attacking moves from Messi which the Italians dealt with perfectly. But despite the solidity of Juve's defense, the Argentine managed a way to force De Sciglio into committing an error in the 38th minute, but the visitors were lucky as Ousmane Dembele failed to capitalize on it.
However, the Argentine came back to hurt them in the final minute of the first half. He exchanged a neat one-two with Luis Suarez at the edge of the box before beating Buffon with a perfect low shot to send his team on top. That was the first time he had a touch in the opposition box during the game.
He remained a constant threat to the Italians throughout the match. The Argentine darted behind the Juventus defenders in the 56th minute and sent a nice cross into the box. The ball was half-cleared and it fell in front of Ivan Rakitic who drilled home to put the game under control.
Messi was not done yet. He came back for more in the 69th minute of the game. During a counter-attack, the Barca maestro made a good run towards the goalpost. He drifted past 2 defenders before beating Buffon with a timely shot to make 3-0.
#3. Barcelona vs Real Madrid (May 6, 2018)
After a comfortable win in the previous El Clasico, Barcelona faced a huge task as they looked forward to defending their impressive unbeaten record against their bitter enemies. Real Madrid, after qualifying for the Champions League final for a third consecutive year, were looking forward to spoiling Barca's party by putting an end to their unbeaten streak.
As usual, Lionel Messi led his team against the Los Blancos at the Camp Nou. The Argentine was involved in an attacking run early in the game but Madrid defenders did well to clear the danger. However, Luis Suarez later broke the deadlock as early as 10 minutes into the game. The Uruguayan volleyed the hosts ahead following a nice run and gut-busting cross from Sergi Roberto. Ronaldo leveled that later before the Blaugrana were shocked as Sergi Roberto was sent off for a foul on Marcelo in the 45th minute.
Therefore, Barcelona entered the second-half with just 10 men, making the task more difficult. However, the absence of one man was not enough to discourage Messi as the Argentine ran riot in the concluding half. Luis Suarez was involved in a duel with Raphael Varane which he eventually won and sent the ball over to Leo at the edge of the box. The playmaker advanced and dribbled past 2 defenders before curling a beautiful effort inside the net.
Leo went close again. This time, it was a counter-attack and the Barca maestro sent a shot across the face of goal, but Keylor Navas did well to deny him. Even though Gareth Bale got on the scoresheet later in the game, his lone goal was not able to stop the Messi-inspired Barca. Their unbeaten run remains.
#2. Barcelona vs Atletico Madrid (March 4, 2018)
Lionel Messi scored a hat-trick against Deportivo La Coruna to hand Barcelona the La Liga title 2 weeks ago. However, it was not that match that technically won Barcelona the league. Rather, it was their recent clash against Atletico Madrid in March that technically decided the title race.
After drawing 3 of their last 5 league outings, the Blaugrana afforded Atletico Madrid the chance to move closer to them on the table. They were only 5 points ahead and the Rojiblancos could bring it down to 2 if they managed to earn a victory at the Camp Nou. These situations made the clash a very important and intense one as both teams geared up for a big showdown.
Trust the big man for the big job. Lionel Messi stepped up at the vital moment and continued with his fantastic influence. There weren't many developments in the match as both teams were careful and remained calm. But a Lionel Messi's brilliance was enough to settle the tie.
Barcelona got a free kick at the edge of the opposition box in the 26th minute. The Argentine stepped forward and curled a perfect left-footed effort into the top corner of the net. The victory sent the Blaugrana 8 points ahead and killed Atletico's dream of catching the Catalan giants in the title race.
#1.Barcelona vs Chelsea (March 14, 2018)
Barcelona faced Chelsea for the second leg of their Champions League encounter at the Camp Nou this season. Following their recent 1-1 thriller at the Stamford Bridge, this game was highly anticipated across Europe.
We have all probably heard about Messi's nightmare against The Blues, having scored no goal against the Premier League side in multiple appearances. Well, the Argentine put that record to bed, scoring the only goal for his club in the reverse fixture.
He did not stop there, the playmaker continued to prove his quality to the world. The second leg at the Camp Nou was a display of his incredible abilities as he single-handedly dispatched the Londoners in a one-sided affair.
It took the 5-time Ballon d'Or winner just 3 minutes to get on the scoresheet. With Barcelona holding the possession for the opening minutes of the game, the Argentine dashed forward and exchanged passes with Luis Suarez and Ousmane Dembele before beating Thibaut Courtois with a low shot that passed through the keeper's leg and went straight into the net.
Messi followed that up with an outstanding assist for Ousmane Dembele that night. The Argentine humiliated Cesc Fabregas, stealing the ball away from the Spaniard in the middle and made a dangerous run towards the opposition goal. He turned away from Andrea Christensen before laying a perfect pass to Dembele who was in a luxury of space down the right flank. The Frenchman finished the ball perfectly, sending a thunderous shot straight into the roof of the net.
Messi was not done yet. The magician continued mesmerizing in the match and ensured that he destroyed The Blues totally that night. After receiving a short pass from Suarez, the 5-time Ballon d'Or winner sprinted towards the goal and dribbled his way to the left before beating Courtois with another tight-angled shot. That was it. The Argentine made it 3-0 for the Blaugrana with a performance that caught the attention of many. Such was his brilliance in the game that Chelsea coach, Antonio Conte went to hug him after the match. Brilliant!
