Not something to be proud of. At least I'm not.
But it is worthy to watch this as Lionel MESSI does nothing to stop everybody to compare him with the great Diego MARADONA.
MESSI should have been booked by the referee as he clearly touched the ball with his hand to score the first of FC Barcelona's goals against Espanyol.
Then he sent home another one (did Diego scored twice the day he immortalized his "Hand of God" goal? Oh...yeah...I think so! ha!) but it wasn't enough for Barça as they conceeded a late goal by TAMUDO and now they have to win next week and hope Real Madrid drop some points against Mallorca.
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Pretty creative by the Atomic Flea ! Adding to the growing legend and comparisons to El Rey. Hey, it's only his job to score goals, not to decide if they are goals ! Ha Ha !
ReplyDeleteMessi’s talent is beyond discussion.
ReplyDeleteBut I had expectations that he was going to show more class than Diego.
One might think it comes with the territory.
But then you think about players like Batistuta, Ardiles, Redondo, Marzolini and so many others, who demonstrate that you can be a great player and have class at the time.
Messi might be unstoppable, but he’s cheap.
Albo
(I'm from Argentina and I guess I've seen one too many goals scored with the hand)
*Sigh* I really wish he hadn't of done it (if it was on purpose). I'm originally from Argentina as well and would rather not see another Hand of God goal. It really wasn't necessary because, as it happened in the famous 1986 match, everyone forgets the second, and much more impressive, goals for the first dubious ones. Messi's second goal was really nice, though not as nice as Diego Milito's second goal for Zaragoza.
ReplyDelete-argentinafan
In the end of the day, people can blame MESSI as much as they want, but i totally agree with JOHNNY on this matter, its not his decision to decide whther its a goal or not, it the OFFICIALS and SOLELY FIFA. It only shows the need for TV replays but as long as FIFA do not barge, then im sorry..more of this will happen. I was watching the MALLORCA vs SEVILLA game also and i was dumbfounded by some referring decisions in that match. In the end of the day, We need TV REPLAYS..FIFA!!
ReplyDeleteRgds,
Alwin
Malaysia
More on Messi's "hander". I would respectfully disagree that the goal is an indication of classlessness. In the heat of the moment, in a huge match, the will to win can bypass the idea of doing everything by the book. I am not saying it's right to do such a thing, but that it is understandable. I am sure that no player in Barcelona's locker room holds it against Messi. The bad thing is that he will be a bit more under the microscope as a result.
ReplyDeleteIt could lead us to a philosophical argument, one that could last forever.
ReplyDeleteWhile I'm against this kind of goals, I'm even more against the pathetic arguments that a lot of people are starting to use: "Messi showed that he has no class", "Messi is a cheat" or stuff like that.
I'm against of people who argues that he shouldn't be considered as a true star because he scored a goal with his hand.
There are rules to prevent him from doing it and punishments if he tries and do that. If those fail, then I agree with Johnny and Alwin.
So now...MESSI is a villian and everyone seem to forget how the EUROPEAN CHAMPIONS AC MILAN (and the Serie B champions Juventus) and the WORLD CHAMPIONS ITALIA's football association are all the real cheaters in the game.
They are those who buy games, referees and rivals, but nobody seem to remember that...they are too busy hitting Lionel because he touched the ball with his hand like many did in the past.
And not all of them are from Argentina. OK?
I probably didn't explain myself well, but when you have a character like Maradona in your country, you live begging for someone to come around and play as good as Diego but without the circus.
ReplyDeleteMaradona was a great player but his life is a pathetic example for our kids (who do everything they can to imitate him).
Albo
Albo, I see your point.
ReplyDeleteHowever, if kids do things to copy MARADONA off the pitch (thing that I doubt), then it is not Diego’s responsibility. Like the great Charles BARKLEY said in a famous commercial: “I’m not a role model. Parents should be role models”.
I understand the media game (and I play it myself here sometimes) and I see that it is very tempting to compare Diego with Lionel (especially when he scores goals that are exact copies of those from MARADONA), but I am not a huge fan of comparisons so I don’t think we should imply that Lionel is the same as Diego as he clearly isn’t.
He is not the same off the pitch, even if his on-the-pitch skills and feats and (in this case) cheats, are similar.
Let’s be fair with him. And, one more thing, I rather see a player ocassionally touching the ball with his hand rather than another sistematically kicking, fouling and abusing his rivals. And we do have a lot of them that on the other hand give nothing to football, don’t we? At least Lionel gives us an enourmous amount of joy and excitement. I rather have one thousand MESSIS and less MATERAZZIS free in this World!
So I never made a comment about Messi's class (I know the person above me did but I just wanted to clarify that). My issue with the hand goal was that:
ReplyDeleteA) People focus on that as opposed to the positive aspects of the weekend, like the beautiful goals. The same thing happened when Maradona scored his Hand of God goal. If you ask the average person (not a huge soccer fan) about a famous goal that Maradona scored and a majority are going to answer with the hand goal as opposed to his second which was pure talent.
B) Ever since that famous hand goal, Argentinians have had an unjustified reputation of being cheaters or playing dirty. It's unfair because as Seba rightly pointed out, cheating is not limited to Argentinian players nor do they do it more than athletes from other countries and specifically other regions (players from Latin countries are NOT the only to cheat or specifically dive, look at Michael Owen, Drogba and Robben to name just three).
-argentinafan
Very good points from both of you Seba and argentinafan.
ReplyDeleteI hear you both.
I guess I'm biased by the radical change of values argentinean kids have been experimenting through the last years.
But thanks for your responses. :-)
Albo
I hear you Albo, I hear you.
ReplyDeleteUnfortunatelly, our kids have little inspiration from people who are supposed to be role models (politicians are the first that come to my mind).
It is a mistake if they take a sporting personality, a rock star or another type of celebrity as role models.
However, this is something that will always happen.
But I wouldn't dare to say MESSI is a bad example because I think if you see the story of his life, he can become an example of how to fight against adversity and how to overcome all sorts of problems.
Carlos TEVEZ is also a good example of that. But he is not perfect.
Icons like these SHOULD NOT BE PERFECT!
If they were unvulnerable, almost machines, nobody would admire them.
See...NADAL might be a great player, a leyend in the makings, but yesterday at Paris...nobody wanted him to win. I think that is due to him losing his human status. And hence, losing every chance of connection that the spectator could feel with him if he was vulnerable, more human.
Well put Seba, and what a smart fellow you are, despite being a young whippersnapper. Anybody who references the great Chuck Barkley is ok by me ! Carry on !
ReplyDelete