If you take all the goals, assists, trophies.. all achievements from players and only judged them on footballing ability.. no one can argue against Messi. He is the greatest footballer to ever play football.
If you take out all goal and assists you are taking out probably the best part of the sport. And given that Messi has played always as a forward or as a 10, you are taking out his greatest contributions. If you take out goals and assists, Varane is a better player than Cristiano Ronaldo, for instance, which is ridiculous. All CR7 has to offer is goals and assists. Messi does offer more than goals and assists though, but still, you are taking out his best.
I think Scaloni showed everyone what tactics should do, they aren't supposed to be fancy for their own sake, they need to get the best out of the players you have. Scaloni had a good squad and a good Version of Messi, but a much weaker Messi than lets say, 2012. The difference is when you build a team around letting a player like Messi flourish there is no stopping it. No complex shape or tricky man marking scheme can stop Leo when's his playing he is hungry and playing his natural game. Messi should never be a part of the gameplan, He's gamebreaker. He IS the plan.
The shifting of McAllister is a genius move in my opinion. The creation of a midfield box is the best Opportunity to let Messi shine, cause he had De Paul and Paredes on the field who are exzellent in the defense and he had Enzo plus McAllister to combine with. Also The Position of Alvarez was astonishing good (even when Martinez could still play a similiar role, but Alvarez was a better fit) outstanding from Scaloni (sorry for my bad Grammar or some false spellings, English is not my mother tongue)
Ironically, people criticize mourinho for executing the same approach to get results & consider him inferior to Pep since Mou plays a negative football?
@@luserguy4732Mourinho did play negative football most of his carrer, Scaloni might not be a better coach but he's a "braver" coach so to speak (not a diss on mourinho, its just different ways of playing football)
@vibe6750 What's negative or positive if not just arbitrary connotations? Not every team likes to play possession play. Mourinho plays counter attacking style of play, how's it negative?
Messi is 2 years younger. Why he played more Copa America than Ronaldo in Euro? Why they held Copa America 4 time in 6 years while Euro continue to held every 4 years? if Messi played 1 Copa America the number of competition both played will equal. But the authoritiez held 2 Copa America that's why Messi played more 1 Copa America than Ronaldo in Euro. i don't talk World Cup. that's clear only 2 matches without Penalty. TF 🤐
Impact of Keeper Dibu should not be forgotten for the 2022 world cup win. Nevertheless this video was not focussing of that aspect. But it deserves a mention.
@@AbsoluteZero6714 I mean against Australia they wouldn't have been just dead, it would go into extra time and they should still be better. I mean against the netherlands I was also worried that the momentum shifted towards the netherlands after the equalizer but that really was not the case, they still dominated after being pushed down. On the other hand, the save against kolo muani would have been just an instant kill with no more time on the clock to recover. But not only that, let's not forget that Emi saved 3 out of 8 penalties during the shoot outs which was extremely crucial.
@@thombogd1022isn’t it 9 penalties u mean Netherlands shot 5 times while France shot 4 times in the shootouts So doesn’t that just equate to him just saving 3 out of 9 penalties?
Messi is 2 years younger. Why he played more Copa America than Ronaldo in Euro? Why they held Copa America 4 time in 6 years while Euro continue to held every 4 years? if Messi played 1 Copa America the number of competition both played will equal. But the authoritiez held 2 Copa America that's why Messi played more 1 Copa America than Ronaldo in Euro. i don't talk World Cup. that's clear only 2 matches without Penalty. TF 🤐
To me the thing that separates Messi from everyone else is his field vision and his surgical passing. His passing is an absolute thing of beauty. You can find long videos of just passes here and they are obscene how good they are
Argentine here, great video! Another important factor to mention from the managers' side is TIME TO WORK. 2022 was the first World Cup where Messi arrived with a manager who had been in charge the full 4 years between World Cups. Pekerman and Maradona started at the middle of qualification. Sampaoli right at the end with two managers before him. Sabella was the longest with 3 years and managed the whole qualification campaign. Result: Argentina to the final. I think its no coincidence. With so little matches and training sessions available, separated by months, long term stability on the bench is vital. The Federation could've sacked Scaloni right after 2019 Copa America because he was inexperienced and, by that time, it was still showing in how the team performed, but they decided to keep him to avoid making the same mistake again. Certainly a good call.
Never been in the history of any sports competition had the pressure on any player to win a competition like it was on Messi to win the world cup, glad that he finally achieved his holy grail.
Yeah why do you think it only applied to Messi? Why was it never such a big thing to apply this to Ronaldo too? They’re supposed to be the two goats, weird to me
@@Juicersen messi is the only goat, nobody expect Ronaldo to win World Cup because he never perform like Messi in world Cup. Meanwhile Messi is a beast in world Cup, carrying Argentina shit team in 2014 and lost it because of stupid higuain. That's why everyone wants Messi to win WC one day because Messi was so close before
@@Juicersenbecause Ronaldo was never expected to win the world cup for a "small" country like Portugal. Because Ronaldo was never doubted for his passion like Messi did because he's naturally quiet. Because Ronaldo never had a similar player to him win the world cup for his country like Messi did with Maradona. Because Ronaldo never had the pressure of restoring his nation's national glory that was desperate for winning again. Because Ronaldo didn't play for a country that breathes football and whose economical state is collapsing, so they only have football as a distraction. Because Ronaldo is seen as a product of "hard work" while Messi is only seen for his talent and has all his hard work ignored and even criticized. Do you want any more reasons?
I was super glad to see Alvarez get the nod ahead of Martinez for all the remaining matches after Saudi Arabia. He really made a huge difference and was definitely underrated in this WC win for Argentina. Also brilliant job compiling all this! Very impressive and as usual your explanations make it so easy to pay attention to tactics when I see matches myself
Messi has always played the main role.... The difference for me its that the players who played the supporting role stepped up more than we expected.. Dibu, Julian Alvarez, Mac Allister, De paul, Di maria
About the Maradona era, there are rumors that prior to his appointment, players who got along well with him deliberately underperformed (le hicieron la cama) in other to get the current manager at the time (Basile) sacked. That's why Roman talks about "work ethics" and would be part of Maradona cycle.
Argentina 2006 had incredible talent, with a mix of mature players (Ayala, Samuel, Crespo, Riquelme, Aimar, Saviola) with some new breakout stars (Tevez, Messi). Pekerman was an experienced and pragmatic coach that played offensive football. They lost very narrowly to Germany on penalties after a match with 1 half dominated by each team. Germany evened out that match by swarming Riquelme, who for all his endless talent never had the fitness level to be a true elite player. I think they were just as good as any other team in that cup, including Germany, and finalists France and Italy. Messi was coming back from a thigh injury and wasn't at 100%. There was incredible buzz around him, but no one knew what he was going to be. If anything, Tevez was a bigger and more developed player at that point. What we didn't know was that we were watching the last stand of the traditional Argentinian 4-3-1-2 lineup, with Riquelme stepping in as our last great "enganche".
He had both Messi and Saviola on the bench, and played Cruz ☠️ Pekerman f it up. Also, if Riquelme wasn't fit enough to stay on the field, he had Aimar, but coach was caught up by his defensive mind set and played Cambiasso. He even played Burdisso over Zanetti as a RB ☠️☠️ To many awful decisions to aspire to be champions.
@@juanme555 All good coaches have bad days. Of course you need a little luck, but for example the German GK had studied our players for the shootout, we hadn't. For all Pekerman did for our football (a lot) he fell short on the biggest game. The same goes for Bielsa, his preparation for 2002 was terrible, it doesn't mean he's no good. They are humans after all.
Also de paul is key, man is argentina's motor engine, pushing up, in the midfield, tracking back, and supporting messi on the right, shouldering messi's defensive weakness
@@oreos922 yeah, you got it spot on. Dybala is a fantastic player but cant play wide or up top and really is suited for exactly where messi plays, he made an impact in the finals but really would have ruined what made this team work, even with his quality
@@Khatimil maybe if messi play other international tournament he can be a super sub to dybala then (Idk if that make sense because the current tactic is design qround messi)
@@mahirakhtar8969 Yup. Tito vilanova had cancer at the time and he was really close with his players. It's really sad cause that was a really perfect season for Barcelona. Tito falling sick was unfortunate for him and the team.
His Insertion of Di Maria in the final was pure genius but if you know ball, it kinna isn’t. Maria is Big Game Player.. Scaloni knew in his soul Maria would come Big in THAT game and he wasn’t wrong..
His position on the field was genius, in previous qualifiers and tournaments when he played on the left he did badly, no one expected him to put him there
It was tactical play - he was a wide left winger that nullified the back 4 of France putting them under pressure. Ever wondered why Dembele had to track back and affect the penalty? The RB couldn't manage the front line. Griezemann was nullified in the match too and he was their best player till then. When Camavinga and Tchouameni came in with Koman, France's shape changed and the battle was of equal - still they left a lot of space at the back. Any other day, Martinez would have finished things but he had a poor day. People remember Kolo Muani save and he lent able support to Mbappe...but Argentina had more chances that Martineze fluffed.
Never thought Argentina was going to be this good in world cup.. they were thru and thru the best team in the tournament. HUGE CREDIT goes to scaloni .
in my opinion scaloni has a bigger impact in argentinas victory than messi. without disrespecting lio, he is my fav player and the goat but at such a high level football one man cant do anything without a well formed group and team and scaloni is responsible for that
one thing that should be said about the slow start in the 2022 world cup in the midfield was one of their main pivots and key midfielder, even more than depaul, lo celso was injured just before the tournament. they only found success when they found his replacement in enzo fernandez. And also alvarez fixed a slow tournament from martinez in the group stage
Thank you for giving credit to Mascherano. He carried Argentina to the final in the knockout stages on the 2014 WC. My Argentine dad has been bemoaning the midfield for years, finally they found something that worked! ⭐️⭐️⭐️🇦🇷
I watched each of these world cups and it was just heartbreak after heartbreak. The two that affected me the most were 2006 because of how insanely good that team was and we lost on penalties, and 2014 because the final we seemed to be playing better than Germany but a couple calls didn't go our way and to have that goal against us so late into added time... just brutal. 2010 and 2018 were pretty obvious at least in my mind that we weren't going to get anywhere for many reasons. So glad that I was able to finally see my country win a world cup!
Oh man, 2010 was painful, we all knew were not getting too far with Diego as manager. From the start the press kept pushing a narrative about making a team with mostly local players, with the idea of them having more passion and will to represent the Argentine jersey rather than the players playing in Europe. It was a circus, around 108 different players were called during this time. Imagine having a CL goalscorer in Milito but taking Palermo's oldass to the World Cup instead, just because he happened to score a crucial goal in qualifiers. Or worse, having an experienced and accomplished RB like Zanetti, but picking Garce over him, effing Garce, just because he made a motivational speech during halftime of a game.
In no other country would a washed up individual even with the status of Maradonna get to keep such a job. The fact that Argentinians accepted this just speaks volumes about the people. Sometimes that passion works out great, but nobody took Argentina seriously coming to 2010 without a coach. And Germany slaughtered them quite easily. And the Argentine footballing association has nobody to thank for that but themselves.
@@SevenTheMisgiven Maradona was picked simply because there was great pressure on AFA to hire Carlos Bianchi, who had a public feud with the head of AFA at the time. Maradona wasn't a good choice as manager, but it was a great choice to silence those crying out for Bianchi and move the debate elsewhere (to whether Diego should manage the team or not).
Really nice! Dybala's role in the latest international tournaments was obvious, but the thing that could possibly bring him into the pitch, well...nobody wanted that to happen! When Messi stopped a couple of times to massage his muscle during that match against Croatia, that was a moment of fear. Also, hats off to Scaloni & the managerial squad -which included Samuel, Ayala, Aimar, they shared some time with Messi as players in the national team- surely they played a part & helped the group to mantain composure, either to not get excited too easily or to not let their heads down throughout the tournament!
I appreciate videos like this. I thought 2014 was Messi’s last real chance; they got the job done in Qatar with less talent, but more balance than teams of the past.
@anigerianninja4577 idk man, if we had di María and agüero on that final the history would be different, getting to a world cup final it's already impressive
Messi actually played really well in 2010 world cup I feel. He was unlucky.. Gks were making some unbelievable saves to deny him in every game and some of his shots hitted the post as well. Though he didn’t score any goal in the tournament but was involved in almost 60% goals Argentina scored. Example: -1st goal vs korea came from his free kick -3rd goal vs Korea came from his shots hitted the post -4th goal vs Korea Messi had a hand -2nd goal vs Greece also came from Messi's shot. Rebound scored by Palermo -Assist in the first goal vs Mexici
He wasn't unlucky actually. The actual reason is the tactics surrounding Messi: The Argentina world cup win 2022 is NOT Messi's credit for sure. In fact the WC is for Scaloni. If Scaloni not change gameplan after loss to Saudi, Messi never won the WC
What changed? The team and the coach. That's what changed. Messi is a team player. If you're smart enough to build a decent team around him, he'll do the rest. He was always outstanding, but his teammates were not always up to par. Take Higuaín, for example. Had he scored the chances created for him in the 2014 final and the following Copa America finals in 15 and 16, Messi would have 2 WCs and 3 CAs by now.
@@poutsamouni5483 True. At the end of the day, every knock out tournament win needs things to work for you, I dont believe it would have happened twice in 2014 and 2022. If Messi won in 2014 and one out of the many Copa Americas, he would have lost his enthusiasm by 2022. Right now, its easy for him to motivate himself for the next Copa as his club career is not as intense as it used to be. Also he has two golden balls now, a phenomenal achievement.
Why is every loss prior a fail? Most players don’t even get to see a World Cup final. Messi saw two. Each tournament was a step towards his final glory. The most difficult and most prestigious sports trophy in the world he won. Well done Messi
Great analysis, especially on Alvarez' role. I never thought he had such important roles in the team. I think mentality also was significant impact in Argentina's win. This team was made by younger players, which means they likely view Messi as an idol and therefore would do anything for him. I think this is what CR7 lacked from his Portugal team as well.
CR7 had even more players around him who idolize him, but CR7 is no way near Messi as an All rounded player and BTW, CR7 is a diva inside of him and Never Ever put his pride on side to play beautiful with his team. It was all about him. Messi is not like that and thats what make him better and greater.
Plus Portugal have more prospects in their teams, it's a golden generation but Ronaldo can't pull the best out of them because of his lack of creativity and his immesureable non-sens pride
Another blasphemous football comment trying to imply Messi and CR7 are anywhere close. Messi made it happen because he's basically an offensive all-fielder. Cristiano is not capable of roaming anywhere on the offensive side of the pitch and being so decisive and masterful. Quit acting like they're close at all.
@@lexkanyima2195what? It definitely was confusing with their bad coach. But overall that’s because the coach was basically Maradona 2.0 who if you were following football at the time, was trying as many players from Argentina during the qualifications. And no one literally no one has any hope of Argentina making it to the finals in 2018.
@@milk__teee i saw their matches during their qualifications, they are still bitter how they lost the final of The Copa America 2016, which it had a mental impact. Sampaoli did'nt prepare his players which it was obvious
The problem with midfield is also occured in PSG so we can see why Messi in Argentina and PSG is different.. Messi has to drop so often in PSG helping the midfield
Exactly my point...but this hypocritical Psg fans wants to blame it on him. With a strong midfield aging Messi can flourish without dropping back to help in deep midfield. Saw the same thing at Barcelona at the latter stages in Barcelona especially after Xavi and Iniesta left...he got more into playmaking work when both players left
He lost more finals than Messi. Hes probably the one that suffered just as much as Messi and nobody noticed. Also ironically it’s funny how Di Maria ended out performing Aguero and Higuaín.
I think that argentinas main struggle during those world cups were managers not utilizing players main strengths and compacting them into positions that they didn’t play well for
Oftentimes the problem with Argentina is they had coaches/managers who had bigger egos than their tactical ability to actually coach/manage a game or players (Sabela was an exception, he was good). Scaloni did not settle in a single system. Each opponent was an opportunity to try a different tactic.
Scaloni did the same as Sabella in that he tried different positions each match until he optimized the team to perfection, the difference is that Scaloni was more adaptable and used all the players in the roster without fear of making changes and he achieved formations that worked well with Messi and his strenghts. Sabella was a great manager, people tend to forget that he got us to the final, we lost because we played with a rigid formation with too much forward focus.
Very nicely explained video. But you’ve missed one thing brother, the goalkeeping position with Emi Martinez is one of the major catalyst behind 2022 World Cup success which they were lagging behind in the previous editions!
Messi is so versatile he plays as RWF, LWF, SS, CF, AMF, and in many occasions he seems like a CM. He often orchestrates his attack from the midfield. I don’t know a lot of players that can do that! Truly the greatest of all time in the history of football IMO.
Messi had the pressure of being the greatest right from the start, just the fact that he was heavily compared with Maradona, his natural talent and how he was dominating Europe made eveeryone expect only greatness from him ,even when it wasn't his fault, he was the one taking the blame, his mentality got him trough all of that, that pressure has killed so many players career before, but not Messi, he always knew what he had to do to fulfill his destiny
Something very important for Argentina's 2022 success was having actually good full backs and using them in their natural positions, also Dibu Martínez as keeper was way better than Romero and Caballero ever were
When watching the world cup we were talking just how overloaded Mascherano was, a 1 man army sums it up perfectly. Mad respect for him, gave it the best he had
Man. I couldn't take my eyes off the video for one moment. Such a good, deep analysis, and then there are our own "expert" journalists just screaming "THE GUYS IN BLUE HAVE TO PASS IT TO THE GUYS IN BLUE. PERIOD. THAT'S IT." Thank goodness for people outside Argentina still wanting to produce great content like this.
i was pissed, the whole tournament i would just scream at the TV about the managerial decisions lol. Definitely the least talented of the 5 teams here but also the worst managing.
@@lexkanyima2195 No , the talent was NOT there . The 2018 Argentina team was ABSOLUTELY dogshit , talentwise , formwise or even tactically . That team is the worst Argentina team team of the last 30 years in every aspect .
I am an Argentine football fan that's been following Messi since his debut day more or less. I can tell you why Messi didn't win a WC before 2006: The coach didn't think Messi had the balls to play yet since he was too young (huge mistake) 2010: Maradona was the coach. That was worse than not having a coach 2014: Final was rigged. Brazil was never gonna let Argentina win that WC (Higuaín much?) 2028: We had a drunken clown for a coach (AFA even had to bribe a girl cook because she was harassed by Sampaoli during that WC)
2014 was brutal for Argentina. I remember I keep on seeing comments like: "Argentina has Messi. Germany has a team." We all get the concept of this and now we can safely say that France has Mbappe but Argentina has a team. This is all thanks to Scaloni's tactics.
@@tulgabadrakh3110 right, they rigged the 4-0 loss to Shitty at the Emptyhad... Lol Argentina got more penalties in the last World Cup than Real Madrid during the entire 2016-2018 UCL three-peat!
Ironically Enzo Perez would have been a good candidate for that, but wasn't played that much, maybe in 2014 he still played a more offensive role but still he did very well in the final.
All people see from this guy is that he scored penalties,but they don’t look beyond that.Instead of just waiting for the penalty.He actually does something,creates chances,makes plays,assist,key dribbles, key passes.Without Messi Argentina wouldn’t have made it out of the group stage.
@@albertosei8788 read again I said in every game he scored only a penalty goal he backed it up with 2 of the best assists. Even without g+a Messi is a god unless you a causal
I was one of the few people that had Argentina to win the World Cup, I’d even said it since a year before. Many had them as favorites but didn’t fully back them. The thing is Lo Celso was injured, and Enzo wasn’t fairly unknown before the months leading up to the tournament but once him, Macallister, and Alvarez came in it was over. Emi Martinez also carried. De Paul is probably the unsung hero, he was extremely effective in attack and defense.
After losing to Saudi 2-1... thought everything is going to be the same as previous wc. But the moment Messi smashed against Mexico oh my!! He was just telling us "it's not over yet, come on..our people are waiting for us"
Would love a video on an analysis on what most people would call the 4 greatest players are (messi, ronaldo, maradona, pele) and an in depth analysis on who is better, even though we all know it’s messi
How do you know it's Messi ? Lol. Man, you cultists are funny. How do you determine who is better? According to what ? Each of them had abilities that exceeded anything seen before. They represent totally different eras of football as a sport. And if that's not enough, football is a damn team sport, one player in it means shit, even if it's your god. Would Messi win the world cup he was born 4 years earlier or later, or say in Ecuador ? There are so many things that didn't go his way previously, but went his way in this world cup. And calling one player the best is the most dumb thing a person can do about football.
Cristiano is not at the same level of the other 3. Messi, Maradona and Pele were creative players and scorers, players who could do any role on the offensive side of the game. Cristiano is a legend but more limited to certain roles as a goalscorer.
Ronaldo is a great striker ....but u can't put him in the position of pele Maradona nd Messi .....they played @tleast 2 world cup final nd concure it.. Messi played 2 world cup final Nd 4 copa final... Ronaldo never performed in world cup games to be Frank.... Even in euro, he score 3 goals. Injured in euro Final....he is lucky that he win the euro bcz his team actually didn't qualify for knock out stages bcz they finish 3rd in their group
This is my new favorite channel! Thank you! This kind of tactical content is exactly what I’ve been looking for! Plus you do it in a way that’s compelling! Thank you!🙏🏻
Watching Messi lift that trophy, I felt that football has been fulfilled. I don't have words to describe the awe and admiration I have for this guy. He is nothing short of an alien. The greatest alien to ever dabble in human affairs, during the course of history. Long live the GOAT.
A very informative and good look at the roles of managers who have had a very different idea of the tactics they used, some stubbornly used the same lineups over and over, to another who changed the lineups for each game, you put this video together with good explanations that made it easy to understand how things can change both quickly, with positive changes of players at the right time and the positions they are playing in, shows the differences between internacional football and club football, especially when players are used in different positions more often than they are with their clubs,
This Argentinian side cannot be considered the most talented Argentinian side compared to previous iterations, but it’s the one that brought the best out of Leo. You have players that ended up playing key roles who grew up with Leo as their idol, most notably Julian Alvarez and Enzo Fernandez, both of whom have become great players in their own right. Aguero was like a 12th man, giving encouragement to Messi and Co. It’s a far more balanced side than previous sides, which had great attackers, but were lacking in midfield and defensive prowess. It’s actually kind of what I now see with Brazil: Extremely “top heavy” with multiple world-class forwards, but going into 2026 I see the Brazilian midfield being a real weakness. If I had to pick who’d be the stronger South American side heading into 2026, I’d have to give it to Argentina in their current form, and that is without Messi. 2026 Argentina will have a more experienced Julian Alvarez, with the addition of Garnacho. Martinez, Simeone, Gonzalez, J. Correa and Dybala, of course, would still be attacking options. The midfield in 2026 will have a more experienced Enzo Fernandez, who will be the core, along with Mac Allister, Paredes, maybe Lo Celso, as well as Valentin Carboni and a few other young players. The back line will still have Romero, Molina, L Martinez, and Tagliafico or if Scaloni decides to replace him with a younger defender. Emi Martinez in goal. Messi and Di Maria will undoubtedly be major losses, but the core going into 2026 will consist of veterans who’ve already played and won a World Cup, augmented by fresh blood. France in 2026 will be just as good if not deadlier. The likes of Mbappe, Dembele, Tchouameni, Camavinga, Theo Hernandez, Upamecano, Konate, and several others near or at their prime. The biggest losses will be Griezmann, Giroud and Lloris, but the French seem to pump out an endless supply of players. Brazil’s not looking very well-balanced. Neymar may or may not be part of the Starting XI in 2026, but even if he’s still a regular starter, I feel he doesn’t have quite the “aura” for Brazil as Messi does for Argentina. He’s just another good player.
@Sergente Còrtez I know right? I came up with a potential Starting XI for France the other day for 2026, and I found that the average age of that hypothetical team’s about 27.5. Scary. I assumed a 4-3-3 and came up with the following: FW- Kylian Mbappe (27) Ousman Dembele (29) Randal Kolo Muani (27) MF- Adrien Rabiot (31) Aurelien Tchouameni (26) Eduardo Camavinga (23) DF- Theo Hernandez (28) Jules Kounde (27) Dayot Upamecano (27) Ibrahim Konate (27) GK- Mike Maignan (30) Depending on their form, a lot of the slightly older 2018 / 2022 players could still be picked or used as subs: (1) Raphael Varane (33) (DF) (2) Lucas Hernandez (30) (DF) (3) Benjamin Pavard (30) (DF) (4) Paul Pogba (33) (MF) (5) N’Golo Kante (35) (MF) (6) Samuel Umtiti (32) (DF) (7) Presnel Kimpembe (30) (DF) (8) Kingsley Coman (30) (FW) As well as other, younger talents: (1) Wesley Fofana (25) (DF) (2) Youssouf Fofana (27) (MF) (3) Marcus Thuram (28) (FW) (4) Christopher Nkunku (28) (FW) (5) William Saliba (25) (DF) (6) Beniot Badiashile (25) (DF) (7) Khephren Thuram (25) (MF) (8) Matteo Guendouzi (27) (MF) (9) Moussa Diaby (26) (FW) (10) Jean-Clair Todibo (26) (DF) GK: (1) Mike Maignan (30) (2) Alphonse Areola (33) (3) Alban Lafont (27) This is more like a run-down of their main team. Griezmann will be 35 in 2026, same age as Messi in 2022, but a bit younger than Ronaldo, Modric, and Giroud were in 2022. There’s a chance he could still go.
@Sergente Còrtez OTOH, this is what I predict for Argentina in 2026. Again, this is going by a 4-3-3: FW- Julian Alvarez (26) Lautaro Martinez (28) Alejandro Garnacho (21) / Giovanni Simeone (30) / Nicolas Gonzalez (28) / Paulo Dybala (32) / Joaquin Correa (31) MF- Enzo Fernandez (25) Alexis Mac Allister (27) Leandro Paredes (31) / Rodrigo De Paul (32) / Giovanni Lo Celso (30) DF- Lisandro Martinez (28) Cristian Romero (28) Nahuel Molina (28) Nicolas Tagliafico (33) / Gonzalo Montiel (29) / or another younger player GK: Emiliano Martinez (33) Upcoming Talents: (1) Facundo Buananotte (21) (MF) (2) Luka Romero (21) (MF) (3) Nicolas Paz (21) (MF) (4) Matias Soule (23) (MF) (5) Valentin Carboni (21) (MF) (6) Maximo Perrone (23) (MF) (7) Franco Carboni (23) (DF / MF) They’ll still be a good team in 2026, but the loss of Messi and Di Maria will be impactful. Most of their upcoming players seem to be in the midfield, so I think although a 4-3-3 can still be played with most of the 2022 core, depending on how things go, I think 4-4-2 might actually be more suitable for 2026 Argentina, at least in certain matches.
Great video!! I did not think that you knew the contexts behind each world cup that Argentina played (Different problems and decisions of the managers) you are very well informed people. Also very well explained the tactical part and the positions of Messi in the field. Is sad how in 2010 Messi has to go back so deep to help Mascherano, when he was a beast near the goal in tath time
Lets appreciate Emi matinez as well, couldn't be possible without him, man was the wall of Argentina in penalties and the last min. Save against kolo muani
I watched all the games again, as an avid lover of football and Argentine myself, I wanted to see everything calmer. The minute that Enzo Fernandez gets into the field, the position of Messi changes for the entire tournament. Messi was doing two jobs at a time and suddenly, he has somebody to trust to do one of them, and MacAllister and Julian Alvarez have the speed and strength to cover more space on the field. Messi was liberated to do what he is best at.
Great analysis. Just add, besides tactics, this Argentina team is just different. Younger players have watched Messi playing when they grow up. They would die for him. I don't know if we will see such a great and special team in next a few decades.
IMO, the best player in the 2022 final vs france on both sides was Mac Allister - unlike mbappe, and the entire french team, Mac Allister played well for the entire 120 mins
what changed? better players. Currently, Messi is surrounded by better players, better teammates, guys who will give their lives for him in a heart breath. Almost half of the team have 20-26 years old, that means this boys grewup watching Leo like an idol.
👉Maradona biggest crime as an Argentina coach was removing the majestic (Juan Román Riquelme) & introducing the curse (Gonzalo Higuaín). 🤢🤢🤮 Higuain brought the gods ire over the national team for years. 👿
During that world cup I kept saying it that I loved Scaloni because he wasn't a theorist, he was a problem solver. To crown his achievements he solved quite possibly what would have gone on the be the biggest problem in football.
Won copa america against south american champion. Won finalissima against European champion. Won world cup against world champion. Won all against defending champions. 🔥
For a 36 year old man doing what he did in 2022 world cup and just taking all the hate and insults for not winning anything for his national team plus using it as feul for his achievement, MESSI deserves!!!!! matter of fact give him the Balon dor as a prize.
Yes but during Pele’s time Club football was stronger in South America than Europe. That’s why a team full of players playing in South America were able to win the World Cup & Santos would regularly defeat European teams. The UCL has only had all the best players for the last 25-30 years.
I mean, Di Stefano still is on the conversation tho. He also won the super Ballon D'or over those two (just an award I know, but shows he is "there") and was considered the GOAT by Maradona. But yeah, a WC is much more than UCL, no doubt about it.
@@leemc5646 It's still true tho, at least in the first half of the 20th century the best football leagues were Argentina and Uruguay earlier and later Brazil.
I think what I like the most of all of this is the hope we have now with all this new young talent. Before we had so many stars in addition to Messi and kept failing, and this time we knew and know we won't have Messi for much longer, so what would be left then? But now we have a lovely midfield, a beloved goalkeeper, wonderful Julian and a great coaching/managerial team to look forward to when Leo finally leaves us. And who knows, we might even keep discovering new talent in the meantime. This world cup really was refreshing for us. It got us results yes, but it also brought back confidence and hope which were getting shakier and shakier with each missed opportunity.
what changed? all the other world cups were fair, but in this one fifa helped him so that he can complete his carrer by getting a wc and balon dor lol, this guy was gifted everything from the beginning. he got free gifted pens, lol not one penalty should have been given. What changed is 5 penalties in a 7 game tournament No Yellow Card for Messi for hand ball and several other decisions in favour of Argentina
They gave many decisions against them, but ig you're blind to that, or the fact that even without pens he still had the 2nd most goal contributions in the tournament
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If you take all the goals, assists, trophies.. all achievements from players and only judged them on footballing ability.. no one can argue against Messi. He is the greatest footballer to ever play football.
By very far
This comment shows what a great football fan you are ! And yes Messi is more than just stats
Joker 😂
If you take out all goal and assists you are taking out probably the best part of the sport. And given that Messi has played always as a forward or as a 10, you are taking out his greatest contributions. If you take out goals and assists, Varane is a better player than Cristiano Ronaldo, for instance, which is ridiculous. All CR7 has to offer is goals and assists. Messi does offer more than goals and assists though, but still, you are taking out his best.
@@RaghaBalajikid you dont know football clearly and you only watch highlights
I think Scaloni showed everyone what tactics should do, they aren't supposed to be fancy for their own sake, they need to get the best out of the players you have. Scaloni had a good squad and a good Version of Messi, but a much weaker Messi than lets say, 2012. The difference is when you build a team around letting a player like Messi flourish there is no stopping it. No complex shape or tricky man marking scheme can stop Leo when's his playing he is hungry and playing his natural game. Messi should never be a part of the gameplan, He's gamebreaker. He IS the plan.
The shifting of McAllister is a genius move in my opinion. The creation of a midfield box is the best Opportunity to let Messi shine, cause he had De Paul and Paredes on the field who are exzellent in the defense and he had Enzo plus McAllister to combine with. Also The Position of Alvarez was astonishing good (even when Martinez could still play a similiar role, but Alvarez was a better fit) outstanding from Scaloni (sorry for my bad Grammar or some false spellings, English is not my mother tongue)
@@e.l.b6435but the pragmatism of that squad had to be crucial
Ironically, people criticize mourinho for executing the same approach to get results & consider him inferior to Pep since Mou plays a negative football?
@@luserguy4732Mourinho did play negative football most of his carrer, Scaloni might not be a better coach but he's a "braver" coach so to speak (not a diss on mourinho, its just different ways of playing football)
@vibe6750 What's negative or positive if not just arbitrary connotations?
Not every team likes to play possession play.
Mourinho plays counter attacking style of play, how's it negative?
A video on Messi's complete evolution as a player would also be quite interesting.
They should do a Documentary on it…like MJ’s Last Dance..
I think TH-cam has many docs on it
It will be huge
Messi is 2 years younger. Why he played more Copa America than Ronaldo in Euro? Why they held Copa America 4 time in 6 years while Euro continue to held every 4 years? if Messi played 1 Copa America the number of competition both played will equal. But the authoritiez held 2 Copa America that's why Messi played more 1 Copa America than Ronaldo in Euro. i don't talk World Cup. that's clear only 2 matches without Penalty. TF 🤐
Lionel Messi - Ascending to Greatness is a really good documentary about his early years
Impact of Keeper Dibu should not be forgotten for the 2022 world cup win. Nevertheless this video was not focussing of that aspect. But it deserves a mention.
(1) Save against Kuol (🇦🇺) (Round of 16)
(2) Save against Kolo Muani (🇫🇷) (Final)
@@AbsoluteZero6714 I mean against Australia they wouldn't have been just dead, it would go into extra time and they should still be better. I mean against the netherlands I was also worried that the momentum shifted towards the netherlands after the equalizer but that really was not the case, they still dominated after being pushed down.
On the other hand, the save against kolo muani would have been just an instant kill with no more time on the clock to recover.
But not only that, let's not forget that Emi saved 3 out of 8 penalties during the shoot outs which was extremely crucial.
@@thombogd1022isn’t it 9 penalties u mean
Netherlands shot 5 times while France shot 4 times in the shootouts
So doesn’t that just equate to him just saving 3 out of 9 penalties?
@@etiennedeleage6804 oh you're right
@@etiennedeleage6804 forgot that the netherlands shot 5
Final after final
Heartbroken
Criticized so many times
Finally he achieved wht he always dreamed ❤
The greatest of all time.
Thanks to Scaloni and Dibu
@@andresromanoguzzo3845 forever grateful 💕
@@andresromanoguzzo3845thanks to everyone on the team
@@andresromanoguzzo3845thanks to Messi. Without an Argentinian star Argentina doesn’t flourish
Messi is 2 years younger. Why he played more Copa America than Ronaldo in Euro? Why they held Copa America 4 time in 6 years while Euro continue to held every 4 years? if Messi played 1 Copa America the number of competition both played will equal. But the authoritiez held 2 Copa America that's why Messi played more 1 Copa America than Ronaldo in Euro. i don't talk World Cup. that's clear only 2 matches without Penalty. TF 🤐
To me the thing that separates Messi from everyone else is his field vision and his surgical passing. His passing is an absolute thing of beauty. You can find long videos of just passes here and they are obscene how good they are
You mean aside his alien dribbling?
Argentine here, great video! Another important factor to mention from the managers' side is TIME TO WORK.
2022 was the first World Cup where Messi arrived with a manager who had been in charge the full 4 years between World Cups. Pekerman and Maradona started at the middle of qualification. Sampaoli right at the end with two managers before him. Sabella was the longest with 3 years and managed the whole qualification campaign.
Result: Argentina to the final. I think its no coincidence.
With so little matches and training sessions available, separated by months, long term stability on the bench is vital. The Federation could've sacked Scaloni right after 2019 Copa America because he was inexperienced and, by that time, it was still showing in how the team performed, but they decided to keep him to avoid making the same mistake again. Certainly a good call.
Argentina were better since Scaloni took over even in 2019 Copa...the refereeing was extremely bad then
Scaloni performed much better than the other managers
I also think that the Messi who won the World Cup is the weakest version, before he was faster and more skillful.
@@sebastianestrada1311only faster
@@sebastianestrada1311Faster? No doubt. More skilful? Sorry, no.
Never been in the history of any sports competition had the pressure on any player to win a competition like it was on Messi to win the world cup, glad that he finally achieved his holy grail.
Yeah why do you think it only applied to Messi? Why was it never such a big thing to apply this to Ronaldo too? They’re supposed to be the two goats, weird to me
@@Juicersen messi is the only goat, nobody expect Ronaldo to win World Cup because he never perform like Messi in world Cup. Meanwhile Messi is a beast in world Cup, carrying Argentina shit team in 2014 and lost it because of stupid higuain. That's why everyone wants Messi to win WC one day because Messi was so close before
@@Juicersenbecause Ronaldo was never expected to win the world cup for a "small" country like Portugal. Because Ronaldo was never doubted for his passion like Messi did because he's naturally quiet. Because Ronaldo never had a similar player to him win the world cup for his country like Messi did with Maradona. Because Ronaldo never had the pressure of restoring his nation's national glory that was desperate for winning again. Because Ronaldo didn't play for a country that breathes football and whose economical state is collapsing, so they only have football as a distraction. Because Ronaldo is seen as a product of "hard work" while Messi is only seen for his talent and has all his hard work ignored and even criticized.
Do you want any more reasons?
With the talent that Messi has, he was supposed to be the GREATEST. You can not be THAT TALENTED and NOT win the WORLD CUP.
@@baselb99 Yeah sure if you’re willing lol
Also underrated element is that Argentina finally had a great goalkeeper they desperately needed in Dibu
I was super glad to see Alvarez get the nod ahead of Martinez for all the remaining matches after Saudi Arabia. He really made a huge difference and was definitely underrated in this WC win for Argentina. Also brilliant job compiling all this! Very impressive and as usual your explanations make it so easy to pay attention to tactics when I see matches myself
Messi has always played the main role.... The difference for me its that the players who played the supporting role stepped up more than we expected.. Dibu, Julian Alvarez, Mac Allister, De paul, Di maria
Di Maria has always stepped up.
How did you forget to add Enzo?!!
It’s a shame the higuain always stepped down in main games, he was so good but disappointed when needed
Sabella Had A Good Squad To When Messi Was Paired With Higuain And Dimaria They Were A Force To Be Reakoned With.
About the Maradona era, there are rumors that prior to his appointment, players who got along well with him deliberately underperformed (le hicieron la cama) in other to get the current manager at the time (Basile) sacked. That's why Roman talks about "work ethics" and would be part of Maradona cycle.
Argentina 2006 had incredible talent, with a mix of mature players (Ayala, Samuel, Crespo, Riquelme, Aimar, Saviola) with some new breakout stars (Tevez, Messi). Pekerman was an experienced and pragmatic coach that played offensive football. They lost very narrowly to Germany on penalties after a match with 1 half dominated by each team. Germany evened out that match by swarming Riquelme, who for all his endless talent never had the fitness level to be a true elite player. I think they were just as good as any other team in that cup, including Germany, and finalists France and Italy. Messi was coming back from a thigh injury and wasn't at 100%. There was incredible buzz around him, but no one knew what he was going to be. If anything, Tevez was a bigger and more developed player at that point. What we didn't know was that we were watching the last stand of the traditional Argentinian 4-3-1-2 lineup, with Riquelme stepping in as our last great "enganche".
He had both Messi and Saviola on the bench, and played Cruz ☠️ Pekerman f it up. Also, if Riquelme wasn't fit enough to stay on the field, he had Aimar, but coach was caught up by his defensive mind set and played Cambiasso. He even played Burdisso over Zanetti as a RB ☠️☠️ To many awful decisions to aspire to be champions.
I agree that talent wise, this may have been to most stacked Arg squad ever 😢
@@sebasiegrist9341 2010 was (or should have been) an all stars also. A real shame by Diego and his poor decision making
@@sebasiegrist9341
Pekerman teached Scaloni everything he knows, Pekerman is a genius and a hero, he just got unlucky in 2006.
@@juanme555 All good coaches have bad days. Of course you need a little luck, but for example the German GK had studied our players for the shootout, we hadn't. For all Pekerman did for our football (a lot) he fell short on the biggest game. The same goes for Bielsa, his preparation for 2002 was terrible, it doesn't mean he's no good. They are humans after all.
Also de paul is key, man is argentina's motor engine, pushing up, in the midfield, tracking back, and supporting messi on the right, shouldering messi's defensive weakness
It showed last week in the final against Colombia. Great work by him.
Dybala also made an important impact in the finals. it still buffles me why no other managers find room for him in the argentina team before.
Him and messi don't get along on the pitch, not in a bad way, just they occupy the same space
@@oreos922 yeah, you got it spot on. Dybala is a fantastic player but cant play wide or up top and really is suited for exactly where messi plays, he made an impact in the finals but really would have ruined what made this team work, even with his quality
@@nicoschmidt7618and Dybala is a bit out of position
Dybala and Messi is the same as Messi and Riquelme. They get into same spaces, they can't play together well.
@@Khatimil maybe if messi play other international tournament he can be a super sub to dybala then (Idk if that make sense because the current tactic is design qround messi)
This shows how tactics and team around the star plays vital role for his shining moments
Would like to see a video of Tito Vilanovas Barca team in 12/13 and what he changed. Messis non penalty goal ratio in this season was crazy
Underrated manager imo
Its shocking how easily they capitulated against Bayern munich in the semi final that season. The players seemed so off and unconfident
@@bhutochakrabarti4173mentally broke. Titos absence. Messis injury. Over confidence
@@mahirakhtar8969 Yup. Tito vilanova had cancer at the time and he was really close with his players. It's really sad cause that was a really perfect season for Barcelona. Tito falling sick was unfortunate for him and the team.
@@bhutochakrabarti4173they also got humiliated at home to Madrid in the cup
This shows how important it is to utilise a player like messi. Many times Argentina missed that 😢
His Insertion of Di Maria in the final was pure genius but if you know ball, it kinna isn’t. Maria is Big Game Player.. Scaloni knew in his soul Maria would come Big in THAT game and he wasn’t wrong..
And thank god Di Maria pull this off
I feel he was even more or equally important than messi in that match
His position on the field was genius, in previous qualifiers and tournaments when he played on the left he did badly, no one expected him to put him there
@@sebastianparodi6742 🤨
It was tactical play - he was a wide left winger that nullified the back 4 of France putting them under pressure. Ever wondered why Dembele had to track back and affect the penalty? The RB couldn't manage the front line. Griezemann was nullified in the match too and he was their best player till then.
When Camavinga and Tchouameni came in with Koman, France's shape changed and the battle was of equal - still they left a lot of space at the back. Any other day, Martinez would have finished things but he had a poor day. People remember Kolo Muani save and he lent able support to Mbappe...but Argentina had more chances that Martineze fluffed.
Never thought Argentina was going to be this good in world cup.. they were thru and thru the best team in the tournament. HUGE CREDIT goes to scaloni .
I knew like a year ago
in my opinion scaloni has a bigger impact in argentinas victory than messi. without disrespecting lio, he is my fav player and the goat but at such a high level football one man cant do anything without a well formed group and team and scaloni is responsible for that
@@julianorozco5201without Messi, Scaloni likely doesn’t succeed. The opposite is also true. They needed each other.
@@NiiiKKKOOO true but we are trying to figure out who was more important maybe it was 50/50 maybe slightly in favor of either/or
@@lexkanyima2195 I hope you won a shit ton of money betting on argentina then
Thanks for the quality video. Appreciate the effort of analysing messi's 26 world cup games.
one thing that should be said about the slow start in the 2022 world cup in the midfield was one of their main pivots and key midfielder, even more than depaul, lo celso was injured just before the tournament. they only found success when they found his replacement in enzo fernandez. And also alvarez fixed a slow tournament from martinez in the group stage
That was a huge key factor of the midfield
Mcallister was the key.
What changed everything was Alvarez replacing that clown lautaro and Enzo replacing paredes
Thank you for giving credit to Mascherano. He carried Argentina to the final in the knockout stages on the 2014 WC. My Argentine dad has been bemoaning the midfield for years, finally they found something that worked! ⭐️⭐️⭐️🇦🇷
I watched each of these world cups and it was just heartbreak after heartbreak. The two that affected me the most were 2006 because of how insanely good that team was and we lost on penalties, and 2014 because the final we seemed to be playing better than Germany but a couple calls didn't go our way and to have that goal against us so late into added time... just brutal. 2010 and 2018 were pretty obvious at least in my mind that we weren't going to get anywhere for many reasons. So glad that I was able to finally see my country win a world cup!
Oh man, 2010 was painful, we all knew were not getting too far with Diego as manager.
From the start the press kept pushing a narrative about making a team with mostly local players, with the idea of them having more passion and will to represent the Argentine jersey rather than the players playing in Europe. It was a circus, around 108 different players were called during this time. Imagine having a CL goalscorer in Milito but taking Palermo's oldass to the World Cup instead, just because he happened to score a crucial goal in qualifiers. Or worse, having an experienced and accomplished RB like Zanetti, but picking Garce over him, effing Garce, just because he made a motivational speech during halftime of a game.
In no other country would a washed up individual even with the status of Maradonna get to keep such a job. The fact that Argentinians accepted this just speaks volumes about the people. Sometimes that passion works out great, but nobody took Argentina seriously coming to 2010 without a coach. And Germany slaughtered them quite easily. And the Argentine footballing association has nobody to thank for that but themselves.
In addition exclusion of cambiasso was the dumbest
@@SevenTheMisgiven Maradona was picked simply because there was great pressure on AFA to hire Carlos Bianchi, who had a public feud with the head of AFA at the time. Maradona wasn't a good choice as manager, but it was a great choice to silence those crying out for Bianchi and move the debate elsewhere (to whether Diego should manage the team or not).
Diego as Argentina manager would make a great comedy show.
Garcé was picked because Maradona had a dream that Argentina won the World Cup and he was the only player he could remember in the dream. 🤣🤣🤣
Really nice! Dybala's role in the latest international tournaments was obvious, but the thing that could possibly bring him into the pitch, well...nobody wanted that to happen!
When Messi stopped a couple of times to massage his muscle during that match against Croatia, that was a moment of fear.
Also, hats off to Scaloni & the managerial squad -which included Samuel, Ayala, Aimar, they shared some time with Messi as players in the national team- surely they played a part & helped the group to mantain composure, either to not get excited too easily or to not let their heads down throughout the tournament!
I appreciate videos like this. I thought 2014 was Messi’s last real chance; they got the job done in Qatar with less talent, but more balance than teams of the past.
2014 should have been his moment in terms of legacy
no, it's greater for his legacy in 2022. With those final losses, he is a saint in Argentina now.
@@subliminalking.7994 maybe more iconic
@@lexkanyima2195 only by failing you will appreciate
@anigerianninja4577 idk man, if we had di María and agüero on that final the history would be different, getting to a world cup final it's already impressive
Messi actually played really well in 2010 world cup I feel.
He was unlucky.. Gks were making some unbelievable saves to deny him in every game and some of his shots hitted the post as well.
Though he didn’t score any goal in the tournament but was involved in almost 60% goals Argentina scored.
Example:
-1st goal vs korea came from his free kick
-3rd goal vs Korea came from his shots hitted the post
-4th goal vs Korea Messi had a hand
-2nd goal vs Greece also came from Messi's shot. Rebound scored by Palermo
-Assist in the first goal vs Mexici
He wasn't unlucky actually. The actual reason is the tactics surrounding Messi: The Argentina world cup win 2022 is NOT Messi's credit for sure. In fact the WC is for Scaloni. If Scaloni not change gameplan after loss to Saudi, Messi never won the WC
What changed? The team and the coach. That's what changed. Messi is a team player. If you're smart enough to build a decent team around him, he'll do the rest. He was always outstanding, but his teammates were not always up to par. Take Higuaín, for example. Had he scored the chances created for him in the 2014 final and the following Copa America finals in 15 and 16, Messi would have 2 WCs and 3 CAs by now.
I doubt messi would win 2022 wc if he also won 2014
I think he won this wc because he was driven and knew it was his last chance
@@poutsamouni5483 True. At the end of the day, every knock out tournament win needs things to work for you, I dont believe it would have happened twice in 2014 and 2022. If Messi won in 2014 and one out of the many Copa Americas, he would have lost his enthusiasm by 2022. Right now, its easy for him to motivate himself for the next Copa as his club career is not as intense as it used to be. Also he has two golden balls now, a phenomenal achievement.
Why is every loss prior a fail? Most players don’t even get to see a World Cup final. Messi saw two. Each tournament was a step towards his final glory. The most difficult and most prestigious sports trophy in the world he won. Well done Messi
Without a doubt clearly the best player in the modern era. He deserves it
In history
In history. And by a great margin.
@@Rubrasileiro Dont disrespect Ronaldo
@@johnnkurunziza5012 don't disrespect Football
@@Rubrasileiro how Ronaldo is also a legend
Great analysis, especially on Alvarez' role. I never thought he had such important roles in the team.
I think mentality also was significant impact in Argentina's win. This team was made by younger players, which means they likely view Messi as an idol and therefore would do anything for him. I think this is what CR7 lacked from his Portugal team as well.
CR7 had even more players around him who idolize him, but CR7 is no way near Messi as an All rounded player and BTW, CR7 is a diva inside of him and Never Ever put his pride on side to play beautiful with his team. It was all about him. Messi is not like that and thats what make him better and greater.
Plus Portugal have more prospects in their teams, it's a golden generation but Ronaldo can't pull the best out of them because of his lack of creativity and his immesureable non-sens pride
I said it as a portuguese, have a nice day.
Ronaldo had a less influence on the pitch
Another blasphemous football comment trying to imply Messi and CR7 are anywhere close. Messi made it happen because he's basically an offensive all-fielder. Cristiano is not capable of roaming anywhere on the offensive side of the pitch and being so decisive and masterful. Quit acting like they're close at all.
2010 and 2018 they coaches that shouldn’t have been coaching, while their squad was loaded and Messi in his prime
Maradona didn't give Messi a free role
2018 was a very average squad. Clearly the worst of Messi's 5 World Cups. Also the coach didn't help.
@@fabriciorosso9807 but it felt confused
@@lexkanyima2195what?
It definitely was confusing with their bad coach. But overall that’s because the coach was basically Maradona 2.0 who if you were following football at the time, was trying as many players from Argentina during the qualifications. And no one literally no one has any hope of Argentina making it to the finals in 2018.
@@milk__teee i saw their matches during their qualifications, they are still bitter how they lost the final of The Copa America 2016, which it had a mental impact. Sampaoli did'nt prepare his players which it was obvious
I love the fact that you played South African Amapiano when you started talking about 2010 South African World Cup...great video by the way! Big Ups!
Thought I was hearing things😂😂
Messi 2006,10,14 and 18 - Magical but Messi in 2022 World Cup along with the whole Argentina squad was Strategical ❤
The problem with midfield is also occured in PSG so we can see why Messi in Argentina and PSG is different.. Messi has to drop so often in PSG helping the midfield
Exactly.
But no one seems to notice.
And all the plastic fans know how to do is boo.
Exactly my point...but this hypocritical Psg fans wants to blame it on him.
With a strong midfield aging Messi can flourish without dropping back to help in deep midfield. Saw the same thing at Barcelona at the latter stages in Barcelona especially after Xavi and Iniesta left...he got more into playmaking work when both players left
Mascherano also deserved an international trophy for being extraordinary in every tournament.
In 2018 he was ass, way past his prime
He’s the only player I’d add to that 2022 Argentina side, Maradona would’ve been great but they already had Messi so 🤷♂️
@@g.d.m.1315yea he shouldn’t have been called up in 2018, or at least kept on the bench. That squad was all out of sorts.
He lost more finals than Messi. Hes probably the one that suffered just as much as Messi and nobody noticed. Also ironically it’s funny how Di Maria ended out performing Aguero and Higuaín.
I think that argentinas main struggle during those world cups were managers not utilizing players main strengths and compacting them into positions that they didn’t play well for
Managers had a bigger name and ego
Best football analyst on TH-cam 🙌🏾🙌🏾💯
If Lo Celso was there in the WC, their midfield would have looked even better, as Messi like to link up with him (like they did in Copa America 2021)
Yeah, that was also a reason for the issues in the first match.
Oftentimes the problem with Argentina is they had coaches/managers who had bigger egos than their tactical ability to actually coach/manage a game or players (Sabela was an exception, he was good). Scaloni did not settle in a single system. Each opponent was an opportunity to try a different tactic.
Scaloni did the same as Sabella in that he tried different positions each match until he optimized the team to perfection, the difference is that Scaloni was more adaptable and used all the players in the roster without fear of making changes and he achieved formations that worked well with Messi and his strenghts. Sabella was a great manager, people tend to forget that he got us to the final, we lost because we played with a rigid formation with too much forward focus.
Very nicely explained video. But you’ve missed one thing brother, the goalkeeping position with Emi Martinez is one of the major catalyst behind 2022 World Cup success which they were lagging behind in the previous editions!
Messi is so versatile he plays as RWF, LWF, SS, CF, AMF, and in many occasions he seems like a CM. He often orchestrates his attack from the midfield. I don’t know a lot of players that can do that! Truly the greatest of all time in the history of football IMO.
For 2010 the use of inverted fullbacks could have saved them
Chose a good team selection could have already save them
I think it wasnt popular back then.
Diego called up Garcé because he had dreamed it (?) He wasn't fit for the job
Maradona probably even didnt know what inverted fb is
@@mahirakhtar8969 It isnt Maradonas fault though... diego was just being diego.
Messi had the pressure of being the greatest right from the start, just the fact that he was heavily compared with Maradona, his natural talent and how he was dominating Europe made eveeryone expect only greatness from him ,even when it wasn't his fault, he was the one taking the blame, his mentality got him trough all of that, that pressure has killed so many players career before, but not Messi, he always knew what he had to do to fulfill his destiny
he surpassed the expectation tho he literally became way greater than what maradona is
Something very important for Argentina's 2022 success was having actually good full backs and using them in their natural positions, also Dibu Martínez as keeper was way better than Romero and Caballero ever were
Caballero barely ever played, so we can't really compare him
Alvarez is the key player which Argentina found as partner to Messi which helped him to create asssists and goals without any pressure!
When watching the world cup we were talking just how overloaded Mascherano was, a 1 man army sums it up perfectly. Mad respect for him, gave it the best he had
Man. I couldn't take my eyes off the video for one moment. Such a good, deep analysis, and then there are our own "expert" journalists just screaming "THE GUYS IN BLUE HAVE TO PASS IT TO THE GUYS IN BLUE. PERIOD. THAT'S IT." Thank goodness for people outside Argentina still wanting to produce great content like this.
2018
I really thoght its all over.
I was heartbroken never thought they would go on to win the next world cup.❤
i was pissed, the whole tournament i would just scream at the TV about the managerial decisions lol. Definitely the least talented of the 5 teams here but also the worst managing.
@@nicoschmidt7618the talent was there, but whatever Sampaoli didn't have the right players that fits in his philosophy
@@lexkanyima2195 No , the talent was NOT there . The 2018 Argentina team was ABSOLUTELY dogshit , talentwise , formwise or even tactically . That team is the worst Argentina team team of the last 30 years in every aspect .
Imagine the amount of work that went into making this video 👏
Messi's goal in 2006 against Mexico was CLEARLY onside. As clear as Tevez's offside goal against Mexico in 2010.
Messi didn’t score against Mexico in 2006
@@Username-mn7pc he did, but it was called offside, despite him being onside
I am an Argentine football fan that's been following Messi since his debut day more or less. I can tell you why Messi didn't win a WC before
2006: The coach didn't think Messi had the balls to play yet since he was too young (huge mistake)
2010: Maradona was the coach. That was worse than not having a coach
2014: Final was rigged. Brazil was never gonna let Argentina win that WC (Higuaín much?)
2028: We had a drunken clown for a coach (AFA even had to bribe a girl cook because she was harassed by Sampaoli during that WC)
You mean 2018. There won't even be a WC in 2028.
2014 was brutal for Argentina. I remember I keep on seeing comments like: "Argentina has Messi. Germany has a team." We all get the concept of this and now we can safely say that France has Mbappe but Argentina has a team. This is all thanks to Scaloni's tactics.
Argentina's got the refs and FIFA lmao.
@@realmadridworld1688 cry your eyes out, BOBO.
@@realmadridworld1688 and Real Madrid rig the Champions League every year and pay UEFA
@@tulgabadrakh3110 right, they rigged the 4-0 loss to Shitty at the Emptyhad... Lol Argentina got more penalties in the last World Cup than Real Madrid during the entire 2016-2018 UCL three-peat!
@@realmadridworld1688 how many offside goals did Ronaldo score between 2016-18? Refs have everything.
Wow, what a great and fascinating analysis. I can only imagine how many hours you put into this. Thank you for making it for all of us to enjoy.
More of riquelme and Messi together, might of been to much ❤
Thank you so much for the video.
I wonder if masche had a genuine midfield partner or a good coach Argentina would have done matter.
Ironically Enzo Perez would have been a good candidate for that, but wasn't played that much, maybe in 2014 he still played a more offensive role but still he did very well in the final.
All people see from this guy is that he scored penalties,but they don’t look beyond that.Instead of just waiting for the penalty.He actually does something,creates chances,makes plays,assist,key dribbles, key passes.Without Messi Argentina wouldn’t have made it out of the group stage.
yeah he did more then score pens. And scoring pens under pressure aint easy either
😊😊😊😊
@@epicfan1598in every knockout game. Every game he scored a penalty goal only he assisted the best 2 assists. Vs Netherlands and Vs Croatia
@@MSN539
Didn't take penalty against Australia 😂
@@albertosei8788 read again I said in every game he scored only a penalty goal he backed it up with 2 of the best assists. Even without g+a Messi is a god unless you a causal
I was one of the few people that had Argentina to win the World Cup, I’d even said it since a year before. Many had them as favorites but didn’t fully back them. The thing is Lo Celso was injured, and Enzo wasn’t fairly unknown before the months leading up to the tournament but once him, Macallister, and Alvarez came in it was over. Emi Martinez also carried. De Paul is probably the unsung hero, he was extremely effective in attack and defense.
alvarez messi were genuinely incredible along with of course the brilliant enzo and alexis macallistar
After losing to Saudi 2-1... thought everything is going to be the same as previous wc. But the moment Messi smashed against Mexico oh my!! He was just telling us "it's not over yet, come on..our people are waiting for us"
Would love a video on an analysis on what most people would call the 4 greatest players are (messi, ronaldo, maradona, pele) and an in depth analysis on who is better, even though we all know it’s messi
How do you know it's Messi ? Lol. Man, you cultists are funny. How do you determine who is better? According to what ?
Each of them had abilities that exceeded anything seen before. They represent totally different eras of football as a sport.
And if that's not enough, football is a damn team sport, one player in it means shit, even if it's your god.
Would Messi win the world cup he was born 4 years earlier or later, or say in Ecuador ? There are so many things that didn't go his way previously, but went his way in this world cup. And calling one player the best is the most dumb thing a person can do about football.
Cristiano is not at the same level of the other 3. Messi, Maradona and Pele were creative players and scorers, players who could do any role on the offensive side of the game. Cristiano is a legend but more limited to certain roles as a goalscorer.
Ronaldo is a great striker ....but u can't put him in the position of pele Maradona nd Messi .....they played @tleast 2 world cup final nd concure it..
Messi played 2 world cup final
Nd 4 copa final...
Ronaldo never performed in world cup games to be Frank....
Even in euro, he score 3 goals.
Injured in euro Final....he is lucky that he win the euro bcz his team actually didn't qualify for knock out stages bcz they finish 3rd in their group
This shows how managerial tactics are very important and football isn't just about playing it on the pitch.
It's has to be played on the boards first
Football made simple has to be my favorite subject.
Another great video❤
This is my new favorite channel! Thank you! This kind of tactical content is exactly what I’ve been looking for! Plus you do it in a way that’s compelling! Thank you!🙏🏻
Watching Messi lift that trophy, I felt that football has been fulfilled. I don't have words to describe the awe and admiration I have for this guy. He is nothing short of an alien. The greatest alien to ever dabble in human affairs, during the course of history. Long live the GOAT.
Fantastic video, thanks! Very clear explanation!
Great vid, great job. Maybe you could make a vid on Germany 2002-2018 how they changed etc. Especially since 2006. What a great team that was
Belgium in the 80's and 2010's
Gotta say the intro of the video is splendidly edited
Messi was same. His teammates stepped up and of course not having Higuain around helps
A very informative and good look at the roles of managers who have had a very different idea of the tactics they used, some stubbornly used the same lineups over and over, to another who changed the lineups for each game, you put this video together with good explanations that made it easy to understand how things can change both quickly, with positive changes of players at the right time and the positions they are playing in, shows the differences between internacional football and club football, especially when players are used in different positions more often than they are with their clubs,
This Argentinian side cannot be considered the most talented Argentinian side compared to previous iterations, but it’s the one that brought the best out of Leo. You have players that ended up playing key roles who grew up with Leo as their idol, most notably Julian Alvarez and Enzo Fernandez, both of whom have become great players in their own right.
Aguero was like a 12th man, giving encouragement to Messi and Co.
It’s a far more balanced side than previous sides, which had great attackers, but were lacking in midfield and defensive prowess. It’s actually kind of what I now see with Brazil: Extremely “top heavy” with multiple world-class forwards, but going into 2026 I see the Brazilian midfield being a real weakness.
If I had to pick who’d be the stronger South American side heading into 2026, I’d have to give it to Argentina in their current form, and that is without Messi.
2026 Argentina will have a more experienced Julian Alvarez, with the addition of Garnacho. Martinez, Simeone, Gonzalez, J. Correa and Dybala, of course, would still be attacking options.
The midfield in 2026 will have a more experienced Enzo Fernandez, who will be the core, along with Mac Allister, Paredes, maybe Lo Celso, as well as Valentin Carboni and a few other young players.
The back line will still have Romero, Molina, L Martinez, and Tagliafico or if Scaloni decides to replace him with a younger defender.
Emi Martinez in goal.
Messi and Di Maria will undoubtedly be major losses, but the core going into 2026 will consist of veterans who’ve already played and won a World Cup, augmented by fresh blood.
France in 2026 will be just as good if not deadlier. The likes of Mbappe, Dembele, Tchouameni, Camavinga, Theo Hernandez, Upamecano, Konate, and several others near or at their prime. The biggest losses will be Griezmann, Giroud and Lloris, but the French seem to pump out an endless supply of players.
Brazil’s not looking very well-balanced. Neymar may or may not be part of the Starting XI in 2026, but even if he’s still a regular starter, I feel he doesn’t have quite the “aura” for Brazil as Messi does for Argentina. He’s just another good player.
@Sergente Còrtez I know right? I came up with a potential Starting XI for France the other day for 2026, and I found that the average age of that hypothetical team’s about 27.5. Scary. I assumed a 4-3-3 and came up with the following:
FW-
Kylian Mbappe (27)
Ousman Dembele (29)
Randal Kolo Muani (27)
MF-
Adrien Rabiot (31)
Aurelien Tchouameni (26)
Eduardo Camavinga (23)
DF-
Theo Hernandez (28)
Jules Kounde (27)
Dayot Upamecano (27)
Ibrahim Konate (27)
GK-
Mike Maignan (30)
Depending on their form, a lot of the slightly older 2018 / 2022 players could still be picked or used as subs:
(1) Raphael Varane (33) (DF)
(2) Lucas Hernandez (30) (DF)
(3) Benjamin Pavard (30) (DF)
(4) Paul Pogba (33) (MF)
(5) N’Golo Kante (35) (MF)
(6) Samuel Umtiti (32) (DF)
(7) Presnel Kimpembe (30) (DF)
(8) Kingsley Coman (30) (FW)
As well as other, younger talents:
(1) Wesley Fofana (25) (DF)
(2) Youssouf Fofana (27) (MF)
(3) Marcus Thuram (28) (FW)
(4) Christopher Nkunku (28) (FW)
(5) William Saliba (25) (DF)
(6) Beniot Badiashile (25) (DF)
(7) Khephren Thuram (25) (MF)
(8) Matteo Guendouzi (27) (MF)
(9) Moussa Diaby (26) (FW)
(10) Jean-Clair Todibo (26) (DF)
GK:
(1) Mike Maignan (30)
(2) Alphonse Areola (33)
(3) Alban Lafont (27)
This is more like a run-down of their main team. Griezmann will be 35 in 2026, same age as Messi in 2022, but a bit younger than Ronaldo, Modric, and Giroud were in 2022. There’s a chance he could still go.
@Sergente Còrtez OTOH, this is what I predict for Argentina in 2026. Again, this is going by a 4-3-3:
FW-
Julian Alvarez (26)
Lautaro Martinez (28)
Alejandro Garnacho (21) / Giovanni Simeone (30) / Nicolas Gonzalez (28) / Paulo Dybala (32) / Joaquin Correa (31)
MF-
Enzo Fernandez (25)
Alexis Mac Allister (27)
Leandro Paredes (31) / Rodrigo De Paul (32) / Giovanni Lo Celso (30)
DF-
Lisandro Martinez (28)
Cristian Romero (28)
Nahuel Molina (28)
Nicolas Tagliafico (33) / Gonzalo Montiel (29) / or another younger player
GK:
Emiliano Martinez (33)
Upcoming Talents:
(1) Facundo Buananotte (21) (MF)
(2) Luka Romero (21) (MF)
(3) Nicolas Paz (21) (MF)
(4) Matias Soule (23) (MF)
(5) Valentin Carboni (21) (MF)
(6) Maximo Perrone (23) (MF)
(7) Franco Carboni (23) (DF / MF)
They’ll still be a good team in 2026, but the loss of Messi and Di Maria will be impactful. Most of their upcoming players seem to be in the midfield, so I think although a 4-3-3 can still be played with most of the 2022 core, depending on how things go, I think 4-4-2 might actually be more suitable for 2026 Argentina, at least in certain matches.
@BIazy That’s right…. They’re looking scary and they have a ton of players in their prime.
Thank you, FIFA. We appreciate a penalty per game, not seeing the obvious habdball. You have made Argentina the champions.
So bascially he carried argentina everytime. But 2022 team was/is damn good too.
Great video!! I did not think that you knew the contexts behind each world cup that Argentina played (Different problems and decisions of the managers) you are very well informed people.
Also very well explained the tactical part and the positions of Messi in the field.
Is sad how in 2010 Messi has to go back so deep to help Mascherano, when he was a beast near the goal in tath time
Lets appreciate Emi matinez as well, couldn't be possible without him, man was the wall of Argentina in penalties and the last min. Save against kolo muani
I watched all the games again, as an avid lover of football and Argentine myself, I wanted to see everything calmer. The minute that Enzo Fernandez gets into the field, the position of Messi changes for the entire tournament. Messi was doing two jobs at a time and suddenly, he has somebody to trust to do one of them, and MacAllister and Julian Alvarez have the speed and strength to cover more space on the field. Messi was liberated to do what he is best at.
He can carry a nation, but he needs high-quality MILK to keep doing that
The 2022 WC squad gave him exactly that kind of MILK :)))
That squad were putting together for 4 years and you can see the results
Great analysis. Just add, besides tactics, this Argentina team is just different. Younger players have watched Messi playing when they grow up. They would die for him. I don't know if we will see such a great and special team in next a few decades.
IMO, the best player in the 2022 final vs france on both sides was Mac Allister - unlike mbappe, and the entire french team, Mac Allister played well for the entire 120 mins
For me, best midfielder was De Paul
I have never been able to finish watching long videos like that in a long time. Spectacular video all the way.
what changed? better players. Currently, Messi is surrounded by better players, better teammates, guys who will give their lives for him in a heart breath.
Almost half of the team have 20-26 years old, that means this boys grewup watching Leo like an idol.
👉Maradona biggest crime as an Argentina coach was removing the majestic (Juan Román Riquelme) & introducing the curse (Gonzalo Higuaín). 🤢🤢🤮 Higuain brought the gods ire over the national team for years. 👿
Great video...this messi WC win is so special and sweet.. after many heartbreaks
2006 messi just came from injury though. That's why he was benched
37 minutes of messi and fms lets go
During that world cup I kept saying it that I loved Scaloni because he wasn't a theorist, he was a problem solver. To crown his achievements he solved quite possibly what would have gone on the be the biggest problem in football.
And that ladies and gentlemen is why he is the GOAT 🐐
The best breakdown I've ever seen, shits like therapy
Won copa america against south american champion.
Won finalissima against European champion.
Won world cup against world champion.
Won all against defending champions. 🔥
Loved this video, it was about the Team, it was the midfield, it was Messi surroundings all this time
Leo messi is the greatest of time in the history of football .
Comparing generations is difficult. Messi best this generation
For a 36 year old man doing what he did in 2022 world cup and just taking all the hate and insults for not winning anything for his national team plus using it as feul for his achievement, MESSI deserves!!!!! matter of fact give him the Balon dor as a prize.
If WC and UCL had the same weight then Di Stéfano and Puskás would have been considered as the GOATS instead of Pelé and Maradona.
Yes but during Pele’s time Club football was stronger in South America than Europe. That’s why a team full of players playing in South America were able to win the World Cup & Santos would regularly defeat European teams. The UCL has only had all the best players for the last 25-30 years.
I mean, Di Stefano still is on the conversation tho. He also won the super Ballon D'or over those two (just an award I know, but shows he is "there") and was considered the GOAT by Maradona. But yeah, a WC is much more than UCL, no doubt about it.
"Santos would regularly defeat"
They played two European teams in the intercontinental cup, which they then pulled out of playing
@@leemc5646 It's still true tho, at least in the first half of the 20th century the best football leagues were Argentina and Uruguay earlier and later Brazil.
I think what I like the most of all of this is the hope we have now with all this new young talent. Before we had so many stars in addition to Messi and kept failing, and this time we knew and know we won't have Messi for much longer, so what would be left then? But now we have a lovely midfield, a beloved goalkeeper, wonderful Julian and a great coaching/managerial team to look forward to when Leo finally leaves us. And who knows, we might even keep discovering new talent in the meantime. This world cup really was refreshing for us. It got us results yes, but it also brought back confidence and hope which were getting shakier and shakier with each missed opportunity.
What changued? The amount of penalties maybe?
Tears dropping everytime I listen about this wc again
what changed? all the other world cups were fair, but in this one fifa helped him so that he can complete his carrer by getting a wc and balon dor lol, this guy was gifted everything from the beginning. he got free gifted pens, lol not one penalty should have been given.
What changed is 5 penalties in a 7 game tournament
No Yellow Card for Messi for hand ball and several other decisions in favour of Argentina
disgrace
They gave many decisions against them, but ig you're blind to that, or the fact that even without pens he still had the 2nd most goal contributions in the tournament
@@jonnstewart2023 mind speaking about the decisions against them? let me guess the penalty for france?
Your grammar is a perfect representation of your football iq😂
@@grez367 bro couldnt find a counter argument, started trying to pinpoint grammar mistakes lol kiddo
I dunno why but my throat is clogging with excitement still while watching till the end of the video. Truly glad for Messi