Leo Messi’s inhuman goal-scoring ability often puts his genius playmaking prowess behind the curtain. Statistically, Leo is the greatest passer ever to feature the beautiful game. He has a jawdropping 384 assists, which shows how good his footballing vision is. Messi’s pinpoint assists and defence-splitting through balls are simply magical, and sometimes inexplicable to the eye in real time. Let’s take a quick peek beyond Leo’s six golden boots because La Pulga is not just about goalscoring; he has always been Barcelona’s ultimate architect.
The Master of the Final Pass
From his teenage years, Leo showed the ability to become a fantastic playmaker. Pep Guardiola played a vital role in bringing out that talent by deploying him as a number nine. And then Leo wasn’t just a goal machine; he became Barcelona’s chief playmaker. Messi’s competition, like Cristiano or Lewandowski, specialised in scoring only, but the number 10 mastered both scoring and creating.
Messi’s passing always involved one-twos and quick exchanges in the Barca team. Those were calculated, short manoeuvres to disintegrate even the most solid defensive lines. However, he always had a defence-breaking pass under his belt, too. He used to see angles others did not, and thus his ability to pick the perfect final ball made him irreplaceable. Even without his goals, his playmaking alone would’ve made him a legend.
Messi’s Unmatched Vision in Breaking Defences
If there has been one thing defenders feared more than Leo’s dribbling, it were his magical through balls. A good through ball always requires a perfect weight and passing lane. It’s essential that the ball is passed in front of the running player, but the balance should be perfect: it must be soft enough to control and fast enough to beat the backline.
Leo’s through balls were pure art. Throughout his Barca days, he used to carve open teams with his immaculate balls. The Champions League assist for Neymar against Juventus, or the World Cup quarter-final defence-splitting through ball to Molina against the Netherlands – I could just keep naming. Messi’s masterclass in timing these through balls always forced defenders into mistakes and made him manipulate spaces.
Messi’s Creative Genius Was Barcelona’s True Engine
We all know how Messi used to score 50+ goals a season and carry the responsibility of leading the Barcelona attack. However, his playmaking was just equally vital. Leo could rival Cristiano, Lewandowski, and Suarez in goals, and rival playmakers like De Bruyne, Modric, and Kroos in playmaking at the same time.
This beautiful creativity and control used to dictate Barcelona’s tempo in games, drew defenders in and unlocked stubborn defences with sometimes only a single pass. Leo’s vision became Barcelona’s engine, and thus, the Catalan team always relied on Messi as its fuel.
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