As Lionel Andrés Messi displayed his otherworldly powers once more at the recently concluded FIFA World Cup, here’s a fun throwback to some of the “vs Messi” debates we have witnessed over the last two decades. A lot of careers have been made by pitching someone or something against Lionel Messi in one GOAT debate or another. Once the ripples settle and people discover new ways to earn their bread and butter, which of these debates will remain relevant? What will stand the test of time? What is the greatest of all time (GOAT) of “vs Messi” debates?

The football “vs Messi” debates

I’ll list the usual contenders below and, at the end, touch on the GOAT debates that truly matter.

Vs Diego Maradona: most joy for the fans

Maradona is often tipped as the more flamboyant Argentinian, with a big personality on and off the pitch who could inspire millions. Messi is often described as someone who lacked that big personality. Though Messi commanded incredible respect from teammates and rivals alike, some fans still consider Maradona the GOAT because he brought more joy to Argentina with his larger-than-life personality. A solid winning contender, this one.

Vs Pelé: greatest of World Cups

Pelé was part of three World Cup-winning squads, unlike Messi, who played in three finals and won just one of them. Messi carried less dominant Argentina sides to three finals. Pelé, on the other hand, barely featured in the second tournament and was part of a team widely considered one of the best ever in the third. Still, his three World Cup wins make him the GOAT for several football followers. Football can be harsh. One day can change history forever.

Vs Ronaldo Nazário: arguably Brazil’s greatest vs Argentina’s greatest

Considered one of the greatest strikers of all time and arguably Brazil’s best-ever player, Ronaldo Nazário is part of a debate even Messi has acknowledged: Messi called him the best striker he had ever seen. Yet Ronaldo is not the World Cup’s all-time top scorer. Again, stats don’t always match reality.

Vs Barcelona: who needed whom

This debate gained traction during the early days of Messi’s career, when Barcelona had the creative midfield of Xavi, Iniesta and company. It became evident how ordinary Barcelona had become when they struggled to win after Messi left. This debate eventually died down, but not before giving some “Messi haters” hope, even if only briefly.

Vs Ronaldinho: dribbles and beauty

People who swear by “joga bonito” and see football as the “beautiful game” often place Ronaldinho above Messi because of his flair and tricks on the field. Ronaldinho, however, has said that Messi could do everything he did but did not like showing off, focusing more on actual results.

Vs Cruyff, Zidane, Xavi and Iniesta: footballing IQ

Some people think football is about seeing the field from a top-down view and predicting the game split-seconds faster than others. Messi clearly proved time and again that he was better than anyone else by miles. Yes, these are legends, but Messi’s genius is unparalleled.

Vs Cristiano Ronaldo: bigger internet fanbase

Football is often played on the internet through fan-generated content and engagement. Cristiano Ronaldo, with more Instagram followers and his “Siuuu”, is often considered the GOAT by his fans online. It is probably only a matter of time before the internet finds a new topic for engagement farming when this debate dies.

Vs Real Madrid: for El Clásico

Real Madrid are the most successful club football team in history, with the greatest record and some of the deepest pockets in the sport. Matches between Barcelona and Real Madrid, known as El Clásico, are among the fiercest games in football. Unexpectedly, Messi did pretty well against the best team.

Vs Lamine Yamal: battle of two generations

As Messi approaches retirement, the one player widely deemed capable of following in his footsteps is Yamal. Like Messi, he plays for Barcelona and came through La Masia. His World Cup final against Messi was billed as a battle of generations, and Yamal came out on top. Believe it or not, the biggest challenger to Messi’s legacy today may be Yamal, simply because he is only 19. The best hope of getting anywhere near Messi has to be a 19-year-old with years left to grow.

Vs Premier League: physicality

The Premier League is considered the greatest league, and Messi was thought incapable of performing well in it because of its physicality. Funnily enough, despite never playing there, Messi built one of the strongest records against top Premier League clubs, even compared with players who spent their careers in the league. Another dumb hypothesis.

Vs Neymar: Brazil’s contemporary great

Neymar had the talent and flair, and played for the greatest footballing nation: Brazil. He was compared with Messi at the start of his career. Sadly, he did not have the career Brazilians may have wanted.

Vs Mbappé: most goals in the World Cup

It is easy to speak only in terms of goals scored; that requires the least analytical thinking. Mbappé now leads Messi, who sits second overall, in World Cup goals.

Vs Sergio Ramos, Pepe, Marcelo and Casemiro: Real Madrid’s defence

Real Madrid’s defence was the most savage ever. They seemed out to kill Messi every time he touched the ball. Safe to say, Messi was the overall winner against the GOAT defending unit. All these players had nothing but immense respect for Messi once they left Real Madrid. Casemiro has now replaced De Paul as Messi’s bodyguard at Inter Miami.

Vs Juninho, Beckham and Roberto Carlos: free kicks

Free kicks are another aspect of the game that produced challengers to Messi’s GOAT status. Juninho still leads Messi, who sits second overall. Players like Beckham and Roberto Carlos also have legendary free kicks to their names.

Vs the other contemporaries: different kinds of greatness

Other mentionable contemporaries entering the Messi debate through particular aspects of the game:

Luka Modrić and Mohamed Salah carried their countries. Modric even had considerable success at the World Cups with ordinary sides like Messi.

Kevin De Bruyne challenged him in playmaking and vision.

Harry Kane, Erling Haaland, Robert Lewandowski and Luis Suárez did it through threatening his goalscoring records.

Virgil van Dijk even made the case for defenders, coming close to beating Messi to the Ballon d’Or.

All legitimate “vs Messi” debates.

Vs Messi (2006–2015): youth

Finally, as we stand here with an older Messi, the biggest debate is whether the first half of his career was better than the second, when he traded some speed and agility for vision and playmaking. People declare a new peak in Messi’s career every few years, defining it with new standards and benchmarks. Messi’s World Cup performance at 39 was arguably his greatest ever.

The GOAT “vs Messi” debates that matter

You see, all the above debates are pertinent to football and footballers. It’s a shame that the “vs Messi” debates have largely captured media attention only in the context of football. The GOAT debate that truly matters is the “GOAT human” to have ever walked the planet. Messi’s ‘walks’ on the field can hardly be matched by any other human who has lived, but I do have a list of contenders. Who were the humans whose magic, influence and genius (not necessarily moral compass) were comparable to Messi’s? I would put forward the following folks:

• Leonardo da Vinci
• Albert Einstein, Newton
• Mahatma Gandhi, Mandela, or Martin Luther King Jr.
• Confucius, Buddha, Jesus, and others of that stature
• Alexander the Great
• Christopher Columbus
• Aristotle, Aryabhatta

It might take us ages and profound wisdom to figure this out. Who’s your challenger? I might do a second part of this article to settle this more important contention once and for all.

“Vs Messi”: gods edition

Lastly, if we were to go completely into unhinged territory, we would need to enter the GOAT “vs Messi: gods edition” debate. I don’t think we have reached a level of intelligence at which we could do that without offending most people. So I’ll refrain from going any deeper.

Conclusion

I don’t know whether Messi will retire or show up one more time. He keeps surprising us, doing inhuman things and defying biology and physics. But maybe that was it.

If it was, my only regret is that it wasn’t enough. I wish we lived in a world where Messi was selfish. I wish he hadn’t always chosen loyalty. I wish he had chosen Spain over Argentina. I wish he had played for Real Madrid. I wish he had taken every great opportunity that came his way. I wish he had scored all those goals he chose to give away. I wish he had stayed up front. I wish we had witnessed even more of the magic that biology says we will not see often. I wish we could slow the clock down.