The greatest footballer of our generation but how far will he go?

The best ever? 

Lionel Messi has surpassed almost every record there is in the game but at just 24, just how much more can the ‘magician’ achieve?

Having scored a staggering 72 goals in all competitions this season and becoming Barcelona’s all-time top goal-scorer along the way, just how much further will he go?

Tearing apart defences, embarrassing goalkeepers and obliterating historic records seems to come so easy to the Argentinean.

The football community, in fact, the sporting world has never and possibly will never witness another talent like his.

Season after season he frighteningly develops and is rapidly becoming an invincible talent.

He is a player, who on the run is unstoppable, with a sight of goal is an assassin and with 254 goals in 384 appearances for both club and country has the statistics to settle any argument of who is the world’s best.

The humble gentleman from Rosario is unfazed by all of his plaudits and that adds to his allure.

For someone so breathtakingly arrogant on the field to be as grounded off it, just exemplifies his special allure.

‘Little Leo’ has accomplished almost everything in his astonishing career at just 24 and his stats are truly mesmeric; it leads football fans to ponder what more can he achieve? What is there left?

With Barcelona at his side he has won almost everything the club game has to offer and has been rewarded unduly with every accolade an individual can collect.

An again you ask just what else can he really achieve? His ability is unmatched, he is a genius at work and a once in a lifetime sportsman. You can throw every plaudit his way with ease.

Yet something is missing.

Something haunts and casts a dark shadow over him.

There is no doubt that he possesses the ability to match the likes of Pele and Maradonna but there is still that something that separates him.

That one thing that would put to bed every argument there is to suggest he is not the best ever.

That one thing left for him to accomplish. The World Cup!

On the International stage Messi seems almost incapable of replicating his performances for Barcelona when playing for country.

It is the stage for the World’s best to perform and is arguably the highest level in football and his performances have been far from spectacular. It seems that tournament after tournament he is predicted to light up the football world, but fails.

With just 22 goals in 68 appearances he hardly dazzles with a record like that.

The reason for this is not down to his like of ambition nor to his lack of effort and heart.

Quite simply his failings on the International stage are down to one factor.

His nation’s expectations, they are too great for one man’s shoulders to bear.

In Barcelona he has a squad of world-class players to take the limelight away from him to allow him to flourish.

He disappears in games but produces moments of absolute brilliance and this he can at Barcelona.

But Argentina he cannot, they expect too much of him and the squad rely on him to produce his magic for 90 minutes.

Every year that goes by is heartbreak and in order for his cabinet to be graced with that World Cup medal he desperately needs a world-class squad around him.

It is the pinnacle of world football and to be considered the greatest he must achieve this goal.

However, there is hope!

Brazil 2014 could be the stage and with players like Aguero and Tevez beginning to blossom the expectation and imperative importance decreases.

His talent is doubtless, his stats do not lie, just one thing remains, that World Cup.

Leicester v Cardiff Match Report

Leicester City held off a late comeback from Cardiff City to grind out a deserved 2-1 victory as they continued their push for a playoff spot.

The Foxes came into the game on the back of an away defeat to Brighton and were desperate for the three points against high flyers Cardiff to keep their playoff hopes alive.

The game started brightly as City dominated the early stages without causing Cardiff keeper David Marshall too many problems.

However, January signing Danny Drinkwater almost unlocked the City defence in the third minute has he whipped in a lovely ball from the left hand side which almost found its way through to in-form striker Jermaine Beckford.

The former Manchester United Midfielder impressed throughout the game with some fantastic distribution in the centre of the park as Leicester took control of the midfield suffocating the Cardiff strike force who fed on scraps all through the game.

For all their dominance Leicester couldn’t find that all important opener as Paul Gallagher spurned several good chances, most notably in the 10th minute as a delightful cross field ball from Paul Konchesky was met by Lee Peltier who cushioned a header into Gallagher’s path only for the attacker to drag his shot wide.

City continued to apply all the pressure in the winter sunshine and were finally rewarded five minutes before the half thanks to a Gallagher penalty.

A pile driver of an effort from left-back Konchesky forced a great stop from Marshall and the resulting corner caused absolute panic in the penalty area as substitute Fillip Kiss chopped down Richie Wellens to concede a concrete penalty.

Gallagher smashed his effort into the bottom left sending Marshall the wrong way as Leicester took a deserved lead.

However, Cardiff were almost straight back in it a minute from the half as a long ball found its way through to Scottish striker Kenny Miller whose beautifully delicate lob caught Foxes keeper Kasper Schmeichel out only for the goal to be flagged for offside.

The second half was much of the same with Cardiff struggling to really get going as Beckford continued to impress up front, threatening the City goal on a number of occasions.

But it was his strike partner David Nugent who came close to doubling Leicester’s lead as the ever present Drinkwater disposed Cardiff captain Peter Whittingham, sliding the ball into Lloyd Dyer. The winger then played in Nugent who found himself one-on-one with Marshall who made a great stop to keep City at bay.

Leicester did go two up in the 70^th minute as Gallagher got his second of the match with a sublime freekick from 25-yards out.

A quick counter attack led by Dyer allowed the winger to stride into space on the edge of the box only to be maliciously tripped from behind by Don Cowie.

The foul proved fatal as Gallagher curled a glorious freekick into the top right hand corner of the net to send the Leicester faithful into raptures.

Cardiff fought back late on as Schmeichel let the ball slip through his hands from a corner causing disarray in the Foxes box. Lee Peltier conceded the second penalty of the game as a result when he appeared to push half-time substitute Rudy Gestede in the back.

Captain Whittingham calmly placed his penalty down the centre but it wasn’t enough as Leicester held on to grab the three points and continue their fight for a playoff spot.

Tackling... a dying art?

Over the past few seasons tackling has become an extinct art in the Premier League as every week player’s walk on eggshells with the worry of a sending off.

That last-ditch game saving tackle or block could now result in a dismissal as some of the game’s biggest stars are beginning to fall foul of some ludicrous refereeing decisions.  

The Premier League’s most combative players have come under severe pressure from referees as tough tackling begins to take a back seat in modern football.

Part of the problem appears to be the lack of cohesion between referees and their understanding of new guidelines and rules, particularly on two-footed challenges.

There is always shroud of doubt in their minds when a player commits to a two-footed tackle and this confusion has seen some seemingly fair challenges receive a red card.

These poor decisions have played havoc in some of the biggest games this season and have put a huge dampener on some fantastic spectacles by becoming the main talking points of several games.

Vincent Kompany and Jay Spearing are just two to name that have been victims of this, as tackles that would have been applauded seasons ago have given them their marching orders.   

This uncertainty has become a real worry for some of the EPL’s top players as Bolton’s tough tackling midfielder Nigel Reo-Coker said: “I can’t take that mentality when you don’t know what you can go in for and (what you) can’t. If I feel I can win a tackle, I’ll go for it. I can’t change.

“But who knows? Even the powers that be themselves don’t really know the true rules about tackling.

“Everyone can have such long discussions on what tackle is deemed as fair and what tackle is dangerous. I don’t really think there are clear enough guidelines to know how you can tackle in the modern game.”

It is clearly evident that even the top professionals are unclear about the rules so there really is no surprise that we are witnessing a sharp decline in tackling.

One of the biggest dilemmas facing the art is the accelerating growth of playacting in the modern game.

Player’s dramatic over reactions to distinctly fair challenges is appalling and fears grow as we see it more and more in the modern era.

It has tarnished the Premier League’s identity of possessing a tenacious style of play that is unlike any other league in the World.

Bobby Moore’s iconic challenge on Jairzinho in 1970 and Terry Butcher’s blood-splattered, bandaged forehead in 1989 are clear depictions of English football’s true grit and determination that has allowed it demand a global fan base into the millions.  

Spanish football is optimised by stylish and quick interchangeable passing relying on clever movement, Italian football is very technical and astute with some of the fittest professionals around but English football has since lost its robust identity.

The globalisation of the English game has sanded down the rough edges of a proper challenge and the powers that be will certainly need to take the issue seriously before we see the complete extinction of a tough tackle.

Tackling will one day become an archaic art!

The Pressures of Professional Football

Rare is it that football is entirely united but in mourning the tragic passing of Gary Speed there is a universal sense of both disbelief and sadness.

Tributes has poured in from all areas of sport following his shocking suicide last week but at just 42, Speed is not the only football player to be taken away so young.

There has been a staggering trend of footballers that have committed suicide across the globe as an estimated 40 players have taken their own lives and this leads us to question just how big are the pressures of the beautiful game and is there enough support out there?

Just two years ago German International goalkeeper Robert Enke took his own life following a six-year battle with depression. His heartbreaking passing has clearly enlightened German football about the psychological pressures of elite sportsman more than any other league in the world and its time the EPL followed suit.  

Premier League youngster Jay Spearing said: “The psychological pressures that come with football can be huge. When you take into consideration your personal life as well it can be very difficult and I don’t think there is enough support out there to help footballers.”

In Germany they have tackled the problem head on as an array of sports psychiatrists are now available to the Bundesliga; a job that didn’t even exist until Enke’s untimely death. It works separately to the clubs to help those who are afraid of expressing their problems and the German FA have worked incredibly hard to alleviate the pressure of the media on footballers who appear to be experiencing a difficult time.

Since the Wales coach’s harrowing death at least ten footballers have called into a clinic to try and deal with the problems they are experiencing. English football has to buckle this horrendous trend, as in spite of the rich rewards football may not be the dream job for all.

The Players Football Association has also been called into action sending just over 4000 players depression advice.

PFA Chief Executive Gordon Taylor took the swift action following the loss of ‘one of football’s finest’.

Taylor said: “If nothing else I hope this tragedy can encourage people who need help to not hesitate to ask for it.

“I want them to know there is a support system in place to understand their concerns and address them.”

Meanwhile, Speed is set to be remembered by a number of grounds in England as Newcastle United have confirmed that their match day programme will carry the picture of the great man on its front cover.

Factfile-

On September 8^th 1969 Gary Speed was born in Mancot, Flintshire. Just 19 years later he signed his first professional contract with Leeds making his debut at the tender age of 19. In 2006 he became the first player to make 500 premier league appearances, just one of his many achievements. Sadly 2008 marked the end of Speed’s career as a player totalling a mammoth 677 EPL appearances. In 2011 he takes charge of the Welsh national team for the first time in a 3-0 defeat to the Republic of Ireland. November 27^th and the Welsh FA confirm his death.