FIFA Gets It Wrong Again: Why Messi Was Not the Best Player in Brazil

By: Kevin Saad (@KevinSaad93)

On Sunday night, a spectacular World Cup came to a close when Germany lifted the trophy in the legendary Maracana stadium in Rio de Janiero.

German fans celebrated on the Copacabana beach and back in their native land while Argentinians were left with that empty feeling that fans of 30 other nations can relate to. However, one Argentine in particular was devastated but still managed to walk away with some nice hardware. That Argentine was Lionel Messi.

The global icon was awarded the Golden Ball as the tournament’s best player to the shock of many. To the fan that saw this news in passing, this may have seemed pretty standard based on his worldwide popularity.  If we are using this tournament as a sample size, however, then FIFA was absolutely wrong when picking their tournament MVP, and here is why.

1.) Rising to the occasion on the biggest stage: Messi is an attacking menace. We have seen it for years with Barcelona as he has embarrassed grown men with his amazing skills. And even though he was clutch against Iran and Bosnia in the group stage and played a role in wins against Belgium and the Swiss, he was still absent in the semifinal and final with the entire world watching. On a team with so much attacking talent (Messi, Higuain, Di Maria, Lavezzi), it was the Argentinian defense that dominated by only allowing 1 goal in the entire knockout stages. Phenomenal performances from Mascherano, Zabaleta, Demichelis, and goalkeeper Sergio Romero were the foundation of this team as they made their run to their final. Anyone who says that Messi was the entire team for Argentina clearly was watching a different game. He had a solid foundation and he never was able to find that moment in two of the biggest games of his career.

2.) Better performances from exciting players: One thing that makes this decision so upsetting is that there were so many exciting moments from other players that really put their stamp on Brazil. James Rodriguez’s goal against Uruguay was one of the best you will ever see and he captivated the global audience with 6 goals and a goal in every match he played. Rodriguez was the leading goal scorer in Brazil and led Colombia to uncharted territory in the quarterfinals. Manuel Neuer backstopped Germany to their first World Cup in 24 years by only allowing 3 goals the whole tournament. Tomas Muller was sensational and scored big goals at timely moments. He now has a Champions League title and a World Cup in his trophy case at a modest 24 years old. Arjen Robben was everywhere and used his freakish speed to push the Netherlands to a third place finish. For God’s sake, Messi’s teammate Javier Mascherano tore his anus on a tackle in the semifinal and was still able to anchor the Argentina midfield in the final. Messi was good in this tournament, but not at the same level as these other outstanding players.

3.) FIFA Agenda- We have all heard and seen why FIFA is an evil corporation that must be stopped. From the issues with future World Cup sites Qatar and Russia to the lack of concussion protocol, there are so many things you can nitpick about for the world’s soccer governing body. But one thing is for certain: they love their superstars. In such a huge tournament, they want their stars to shine so they can get higher TV ratings, sell more jerseys, and simply put: profit more from the tournament. FIFA isn’t thrilled about Costa Rica making the quarterfinals because it doesn’t help their bottom line. After seeing so many other great performances in the tournament, I think it was pretty obvious today that FIFA was playing favorites and awarded their golden child the Golden Ball. Think of it as a Derek Jeter or Mariano Rivera situation when being awarded All-Star accolades or when LeBron gets a soft call in the playoffs. The Golden Ball was a popularity contest and Messi is winning by miles.

Without a doubt, Messi is an elite player and has captivated people worldwide of all ages with his skill during his time at Barcelona and with Argentina. But I think I am in the majority when I say that Lionel Messi was not the MVP of this World Cup and it wasn’t even close. Regardless of what the record books say, the memories of this World Cup will live on forever and unfortunately for Messi, his will not be on the mind of most soccer fans around the world.

 

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