It’s really a very tough proposition to compare the two football legends, Messi and Maradona, as there is no set standard using which you can compare as when a player reach such finesse and Grande status. Football is such a complex game that has so many variables attached to it that the data itself can be non-conclusive. Maradona being a star player of Argentina came in the limelight from the year 1986 since when he single-handedly won so many games for the team, his popularity was so high that the various players around the world were compared with him as he served as a benchmark of perfection.
Barcelona was not that powerful team as what is today in the era of Maradona, while Maradona’s departure from the team in 1984 made the Barcelona team really weak, but, he managed to win Serie A titles two in number for the Napoli thus getting them their maiden league titles they ever won.
Messi: The Game Changer
Messi came into the picture after the post-Maradona period and has broken almost all records related to football that one can easily guess his name in football pop quizzes and would win easily a maximum number of times. If we compare both of these players according to the match stats then Messi far outweighs Maradona in almost all aspects. The goals to the game ratio of Messi is far better than that of Maradona, while Messi also has five league titles and three CL League titles with his name which again is better than the three CL titles of Maradona, CL being Champions League.
The era in which both played are really different and according to the statement of Robin Dutt, the German sports director, the team Barcelona is really great even without Messi but with Messi included the team plays like as if it’s from a different galaxy. The major difference that can be seen in both of the players is their playing style, as Maradona always played by taking charge and control of the whole team while Messi is a team player and plays by assisting and helping others too in the game.
To give a final statement we can analyze using the Champions League results, CL being the biggest and the most prestigious football competition of the world where the world’s best teams and players try to rise above each other, Messi has been like a CL specialist and has performed consistently for past many years as the top scorer of the CL tournament which is really no joke. If he continues to play with such feat and consistency, then after a few years his stature may rise even higher than that of Maradona’s, then again, there is really no need for comparison as both players have provided us with the true essence of football and sportsmanship.
