Lionel Andrés "Leo" Messi is recognized as one of the best players of alltime. He was born 24 June 1987 and is an Argentine footballer who plays as a forward for La Liga club FC Barcelona and the Argentina national team. He serves as the captain of his country's national football team. Messi is Barcelona's all-time top scorer in all official club competitions excluding friendlies.By the age of 21, Messi had received Ballon d'Or and FIFA World Player of the Year nominations. The following year in 2009 he won the Ballon d'Or and FIFA World Player of the Year, and the inaugural FIFA Ballon d'Or in 2010 and 2011. He also won the 2010–11 UEFA Best Player in Europe Award.
Frequently rated by commentators, experts and former players as the best player in the world,[5][6][7][8][9] Messi is the fourth football player to win three Ballons d'Or and the second player to win three consecutive Ballons d'Or. Messi has won five La Ligas, two Copas del Rey, five Supercopas de España, three Champions Leagues, two Super Cups and two Club World Cups. In 2012, Messi made UEFA Champions League history by becoming the first player to score five goals in one match.He also matched José Altafini's record of 14 goals in a single Champions League season.Messi became the first player to top-score in four successive Champions League campaigns. He set the world record for most goals scored in a season during the 2011–12 season, with 73 goals. In the same season, he set the current goalscoring record in a single La Liga season, scoring 50 goals.
Messi was the top scorer of the 2005 FIFA World Youth Championship with six goals. In 2006, he became the youngest Argentine to play in the FIFA World Cup and he won a runners-up medal at the Copa América tournament the following year, in which he was elected young player of the tournament. In 2008, he won his first international honour, an Olympic gold medal, with the Argentina Olympic football team. Sportspro has rated Lionel Messi as the third most marketable athlete in the world. His playing style and stature have drawn comparisons to Diego Maradona, who himself declared Messi his "successor".
Messi shortly before scoring a goal against Getafe
Messi takes Barcelona to 2–0 against Sevilla
"Once he's on the run, Messi is unstoppable. He's the only player who can change direction at such a pace.
"He is the best player in the world by some distance. He's (like) aPlayStation. He can take advantage of every mistake we make."
"He is the best player in the world by some distance. He's (like) aPlayStation. He can take advantage of every mistake we make."
Honours
Barcelona
- La Liga: 2004–05, 2005–06, 2008–09, 2009–10, 2010–11
- Copa del Rey: 2008–09, 2011–12; Runner-up 2010–11.
- Supercopa de España: 2005, 2006, 2009, 2010, 2011; Runner-up 2012.
- UEFA Champions League: 2005–06, 2008–09, 2010–11.
- UEFA Super Cup: 2009, 2011; Runner-up 2006.
- FIFA Club World Cup: 2009, 2011.
Argentina
Runner up:
Third place:
Individual
- FIFA Ballon d'Or (2): 2010, 2011. Created in 2010.
- Ballon d'Or (1): 2009. Ceased to exist in 2009.
- FIFA World Player of the Year (1): 2009. Ceased to exist in 2009.
- European Golden Shoe (2): 2010, 2012.
- IFFHS World's Top Goal Scorer (1): 2011.[260]
- LFP Best Forward (4): 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012.
- LFP Best Player (4): 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012.
- UEFA Champions League Top Goalscorer (4): 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012.
- Onze d'Or (3): 2009, 2011, 2012. No winner in 2010.
- Pichichi Trophy (2): 2010, 2012.
- La Liga Ibero-American Player of the Year (5): 2007, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012.
- World Soccer Player of the Year (3): 2009, 2011, 2012.
- ESM Team of the Year (6): 2005–06, 2007–08, 2008–09, 2009–10, 2010–11, 2011–12.
- UEFA Champions League Final Man of the Match (1): 2011.
- FIFA Club World Cup Golden Ball (2): 2009, 2011.
- FIFA/FIFPro World XI (5): 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011.
- La Liga Player of the Year (3): 2009, 2010, 2011.
- UEFA Best Player in Europe Award (1): 2011. Created in 2011.
- UEFA Team of the Year (4): 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011.
- La Liga Foreign Player of the Year (3): 2007, 2009, 2010. Ceased to exist in 2010.
- UEFA Champions League Forward of the Year (1): 2009. Ceased to exist in 2010.
- UEFA Club Footballer of the Year (1): 2009. Ceased to exist in 2010.
- Marca Leyenda (1): 2009.
- FIFPro World Young Player of the Year (3): 2006, 2007, 2008.
- World Soccer Young Player of the Year (3): 2006, 2007, 2008.
- Bravo Award (1): 2007.
- Copa América Young Player of the Tournament (1): 2007.
- European Golden Boy (1): 2005.
- FIFA U-20 World Cup Player of the Tournament (1): 2005.
- FIFA U-20 World Cup Top Goalscorer (1): 2005.
Records
World
- Guinness World Records title for the most goals in a year: 88 goals.
- Most international goals in a year (club and national team): 25 goals (shared with Vivian Woodward).
- Most goals scored in FIFA Club World Cup: 4 goals (held jointly with Denilson and Mohamed Aboutrika).
Europe
- Most goals scored in a season (club): 73 goals.
- Most goals scored in a year (club): 76 goals.
- Most goals scored in a European Cup season: 14 goals (held jointly with José Altafini).
- Most European Cup top scorer awards: 4 awards (shared with Gerd Müller).
- Highest scorer in a European Cup game: 5 goals (held jointly with ten other players).
Argentina
- Most goals scored in a year (national team): 12 goals (shared with Batistuta).
Spain
- Most goals scored in La Liga in a season: 50 goals.
- Most La Liga hat-tricks in a season: 8 hat-tricks.
- Most goals scored in the Supercopa de España: 10 goals.
- Most consecutive La Liga matches scored in: 10 matches (shared with Ronaldo and Mariano Martín).
Barcelona
- Top scorer in official competitions: 285 goals.
- Top scorer in La Liga: 192 goals.
- Top scorer in UEFA Champions League: 56 goals.
- Top scorer in European Competitions: 57 goals.
- Top scorer in international Competitions: 61 goals.
- Most all competitions hat-tricks overall: 21.
- Most La Liga hat-tricks overall: 15.
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