Argentinian GOAT candidate Lionel Messi’s name has been synonymous with greatness since his first Ballon d’Or in 2009.
Despite winning four Champions Leagues, too many LaLiga titles to count, four Copa Americas, and every individual award available, Leo has never won the World Cup.
With World Cup 2022 in Qatar kicking off in less than two months, the Argentinian national squad is in incredible form, as they’ve been in for three years. They’ve played 34 games in that time, including a 2021 Copa America win over Brazil. (The last time Argentina lost? It was in the 2019 Copa America – to Brazil.)
Argentina’s team spirit makes them a hyper-focused Messi machine, protecting the GOAT at all costs.
That’s Atletico Madrid’s Rodrigo de Paul leading the charge as Messi’s consummate protector on the right wing.
Aside from his bodyguard, Messi has plenty of attacking options in Inter Milan’s Lautaro Martínez, Sevilla’s Papu Gomez, Juventus’s Angel di Maria, and Tottenham’s Gio Lo Celso. This team is stacked – from Manchester United’s Lisandro Martinez at LCB to PSG’s Leandro Paredes in midfield.
With this team behind him, Messi is free to do Messi things.
Look at how precise, how sure, how insane that shot is. One touch, 25 yards out, over a grown man’s head. When Messi and Argentina are playing like this, it’s hard to see anyone stopping them in Qatar.
Argentina opens World Cup group play against Saudi Arabia on November 22. They will face the Saudis, Mexico, and Poland in what should be a winnable Group C for the 2021 Copa del Rey champions.
Do you want to see Messi finally get his World Cup win? Sound off below!
Featured Image: Pexels/Bilal Akram/ArgentinaNationalFootballTeam/DM