During the 2015 Copa Del Rey final against Athletic Bilbao, Leo Messi produced a goal that was not only unbelievable for the footballing world but also for the scientific world. To this day the goal is considered to be something quite impossible for a human to perform.
Against all odds
Messi was man-marked throughout the match, the Athletic Bilbao were instructed to give no space to the Argentine whatsoever. This was fairly visible as Messi tried to get past defenders on the right wing multiple times but to no success. But in the 20th minute La Pulga received a pass from Dani Alves on the right wing and what happened next was historical.
The Goat redefines Physics
After receiving the ball just past midfield Messi goes from the speed of 0 MPH to 19.5 MPH in just 2.7 seconds. This unpredictable acceleration is on par with a Rugby player and an NFL pro Jamaal Charles known for his speed and acceleration, but Messi does it with the ball at his feet. 3 defenders then surround the Argentine all just 6 feet away from the ball. Messi begins to decelerate which allows him to make 3 short quick touches to get away from all 3 of the defenders in just 1.2 seconds. Messi keeps on running and reaches the box with another defender standing in his way. He feints him and cuts inside to create 5 feet of space for himself to take a shot at the Bilbao goal. He shoots the ball with a velocity of 48 MPH. It misses the keeper’s out-stretched hand by less than 6 inches and fires into the bottom corner. Opening the scoring and giving Barca the lead.
Messi covered a distance of 60 yards in just 11.4 seconds with the ball getting no far away from his feet than 2 feet just twice and for just 2 seconds in total. The finishing was just as unbelievable as the dribbling. The amount of error margin for the goal by a shot from such a tight angle from 14 yards out was extremely low. If the ball had been aimed in any other direction by just more than 0.75 degrees he missed. Even his teammates and the fans present in Camp Nou could not simply believe what they had just witnessed.
