I think lionel messi is over rated. i'm a barca fan but i've seen things like this before.
he reminds me of saviola. Saviola scored 11 goals in fifa under 21 world cup and was the toast of barca.
when he was at barca , the press said he was the new maradona.

also ariel ortega to had the same impact.

i think messi is a fantastic player but not the world great every one makes him out to be.

@NightRider

True talk.

bros na true o! after 5 years will he still be as hot as he is now. wher is saviola , wher is ortega, even martin palermo for river plate . after being hyped so much in south america he couldn't fly in europe so he faded.

Lets keep our fingers crossed on Messi. The players u have listed above were all good but i think indiscipline and lack of proper player management/development is also responsible.
U cannot say that about Wayne Rooney or even Van Persie cos they have brilliant Managers taking care of them.

your right thats a major factor too. i hope he becomes great, but i can't see a difference in his style of play from that of saviola. they are both fast and can take on defenders without fear. its just that saviola scored more goals.

Saviola is a rat. He is quicker and can outpace any defender without hassles.
I sincerely hope Messi will make it to the world cup. It is going to do his image a lot of good. Saviola missed the last World Cup and that might have dented his bolstering career.

@ nightrider
I beg to disagree. Messi seems to have a better attitude than all those players you mentioned.

Another thing that's going for him is the fact that he doesn't have to adjust to European football. He started his professional career here so he shouldn't have that problem.

With such talents as Ronaldinho, Eto'o Deco and Xavi around him and a man like Rijkaard, I think he can only become a better player.

I may be pushing the issue, but I sincerely believe that if Argentina are going to make any kind of impact in this coming world cup, Messi will be the key. Even the Argentina players themselves are beginning to believe.

If you watch their last game (friendly with some team), their most penetrating attacks all came through Messi's Wing and it was no surprise he created one goal and scored another himself. And that was only his first full match for the senior nat. team.

I sincerely believe he's a special kid and deserves all the hype he's getting. It takes someone special to bench players like Giuly and Larsson on a constant basis.

Lets see if he wont crack up at the big stage. I dont want him to carry such big responsibilty on his shoulder. Argentina has so many good players with huge wealth of experience. I dont see Messi becoming a key player in this team. Riquelme looks the key to me.

I am not particularly happy about Rooney's case too. The overall responsibility of club/country is resting on his shoulder but he seems to be coping but he might lose his head at the big stage.

Yeah Jackal, I agree Argentina have got talent in abundance and Riquelme has been the driving force behind the team but with the emergence of Messi, I think the load is now being shared by both of them as evident in their last game.

And moreover, the thing with Riquelme is inconsistency. He has the ability to wear down any team on his good day, but when he's off-color, you'd rather not have him on the pitch. That's why I think Barca let him leave.

Hopefully, both of them'll excel at the world cup. If that happens, then surely Argentina are a good bet for the final.

On Rooney though, I think the English Press will wear that boy out with HYPE. I never knew the definition of Hype till I came to this country. Rooney is good but it will take more than Rooney(even on his best form) if England are to win Cup.

[s]_{*Did I just say that? Definitely England are not winning any cup*}[/s]

We all know England cannot win. I just have a feeling this is the best bunch of players the country has ever had for a long time. They have a vague chance but everything depends on how Sven will work out the midfield.
The media seems to help Rooney a bit but they have also helped in tarnishing his image. Thats England for u. The media can make or break anyone. Mourinho is the latest prey right now and i hope they wont force the man to leave prematurely

On the issue at hand, Messi is not really over-rated. The player is def'ly talented and i can't wait to see him do it this summer.

hi nightrider,
i don't think messi is over rated. whatever it is, i think people only talk what they see in him. the guy is good and has a bright future ahead let's all pray he succeds in his carrer but i'm stronly convinced he'e gonna make it. he plays in a good team with great guys like the eto's dinho's deco's and the like. that alone is going to help him alot to attain whatever level he hopes to. beside he is overall a great player.

i hope he makes it too. i want to see his skills for many years to come. But i'm just making an observation about other argentine
players that came before him. And the funny thing is they all play and have the same build like him. Saviola, ortega, now messi.

yu say messi has ronaldinho and eto'o, remeber that saviola had rivaldo, kluivert and luis enrique as mentors. But after sometime he faded out. The same thing with ortega. And funny thing about all this argentine players is that they all like to dive. I hope he lasts though.

the way the press is taunting Rooney as the savior of England in the world cup. it's bound to get into his head and he could get a red card if things go against them in amatch.

yeah me too, i think he is actually overrated in the youth championship, they praised him so much, that they forgot to look at the genius of the Nigerian team.

guyz! guyz!! guyz!!! just like coca-cola, messi is it and whosoever thinks that he's not must certainly be halucinating or dead-drunk biased.

@ Rich Olly I 
I didnt get that statement

But ya i think messi is over-rated,  but he is not the only one,
I hate  it when they compare him to maradona, he is not even a saviola jeeze

Messi is'good'

Guy, Lionel Messi is good, no doubt. Am a Chelsea fan but i respect him a lot. His game is a bit above his age.

messi is worth every credit he's getting at the moment. it's sparkling clear he's on fire. which one of u can boldly say u wouldn't want him in your team?

abegii, most of you guys have only seen him play at the U-20 championship and vs. chelsea. u haven't seen much yet.

i am still watching.

Messi is not overrated, he is a world class footballer. I havent read anything about him that is inflated.

withdraw that statement about messi being overhyped , he's the next big thing in football or the biggest thing in football right now

Messi overrated? Are you nuts he is currently carrying Barca on his back with little or no help

The author of this thread will be kicking himself by now.
He is by far the BEST PLAYER IN THE WORLD.
I hope he continues in this form cos he has worked hard as player.
He is so far ahead of his time and he has matured more as a player than any player in the world in the last 2 years.
Messi and Mikel Obi are supposed to be mates and see how far he has gone . . . . . .

MESSI is a gem.

enormous potential and without a doubt deserved to be mentioned as heir to "hand of God" himself. Brilliant, good attitude, skillful with loads of end product so what are u guys talking about.
Far better than Ronnie at the moment and still improving which is frightening. Even fellow professionals are ear marking him out as a potential world player of the year in making. A very rare gem that without a doubt one day be mentioned in the same bracket with the likes of Pele, Madonna, platini etc.

emm, u guys should not get mad bout this topic, obviously, it is old. messi was not this hot in 2006. but for now, he is arguably the best player in the world. u need to watch Barca Vs Athletico

Right now no Messi no Barca how many 19 yr olds have scored a hat-trick against Real Madrid.Messi too much jare

@ A-40,

Messi is the new MARADONA.
The young lad has come of age and he plays some breath-taking football.
He makes Kaka look like a wimp . . . .Messi is quick, can go past players, assists and has a tremendous goal sense.
Leo Messi is DIAMOND.

You can say that again

I stil tink hes overated

@topic
hes the best in his club at present. Thats huge for someone of his age. Its a sign he will rule the world very soon.'
the phenomenon himself, Ronaldo started out like that. Messi is very very very good. Not overrated. My opinion

Interesting this is this thread was started more
than 18 months ago.

Very few people can say that today.

The boy is simple awesome.

Akin Alabi

its AMAZING how media overhypes players.The guy has 6-8 gud matches n all of a suden hes d "best player in the world". Hmm, isnt dat d same title dat some gave to RONALDO last season? people get caried away too easily.