Lionel Messi vs. Diego Maradona: Who had the best Argentina career?

Lionel Messi yet brought the curtains down connected his glittering Argentina vocation connected Tuesday, bidding an affectional farewell to the supporters successful Buenos Aires arsenic the 39-year-old icon took his last bow successful the colours of his beloved nation.

Playing successful beforehand of 85,000 adoring fans, Messi signed disconnected with his 126th planetary extremity arsenic Argentina swept speech Benin 3-0, adding 1 last flourish to an planetary vocation that has stretched crossed 21 years and produced moments that volition unrecorded everlastingly successful the country's footballing folklore.

The diminutive Argentine, making a record-extending 208th quality for his country, besides supplied the assistance for seasoned Nicolas Otamendi to unfastened the scoring, but by past the statistics, the effect and adjacent the shot itself had go secondary; this was an juncture that belonged wholly to Messi and the millions who had watched his bonzer travel unfold.

Earlier, arsenic the autobus carrying Messi and his Argentina teammates threaded its mode towards the stadium done a oversea of well-wishers, the skipper could not clasp backmost his tears, wiping his eyes arsenic an overwhelming outpouring of affection accompanied him towards his last planetary quality connected location soil. The script, rather simply, could hardly person been written immoderate better.

And with the last section present written, 1 question inevitably rises supra the rest: however does Messi's Argentina bequest comparison with that of Diego Maradona, the antheral who transcended sporting greatness to go thing altogether much profound successful the hearts of his people?

Argentina and Maradona person agelong been intertwined similar assemblage and soul, with his sanction carrying an astir ineffable resonance successful a football-mad federation that saw him not simply arsenic a player, but arsenic a awesome of its identity, its struggles, its pridefulness and its capableness to dream.

Messi, meanwhile, has spent much than a decennary carrying the value of those comparisons, enduring the intolerable anticipation of pursuing the antheral whose fable seemed to turn with each retelling, earlier yet carving retired an bonzer bequest of his own.

So, has Messi done capable to surpass Maradona, oregon does the enduring mythology of El Diego stay untouched? Sports Mole takes a person look astatine the Messi vs Maradona debate, weighing their Argentina careers from respective antithetic perspectives and attempting to abstracted the numbers from the mythology.

Messi vs. Maradona Argentina stats

Messi played much than doubly arsenic galore matches arsenic Maradona and scored astir 4 times arsenic galore goals, portion his 66 assists underline the bonzer breadth of his power wrong the team, offering a glimpse of a subordinate whose publication to Argentina stretched acold beyond simply putting the shot successful the net.

The erstwhile Barcelona magician represented Argentina crossed six World Cups and 7 Copa America tournaments, won 4 elder planetary trophies and reached 3 World Cup finals, gathering a assemblage of enactment that grew richer with each passing section of his singular planetary story.

In presumption of idiosyncratic brilliance that translated into tangible glory for his country, Messi became Argentina's grounds appearance-maker and grounds goalscorer by a sizeable distance, establishing a level of sustained excellence that Maradona, done nary responsibility of his own, simply ne'er had the accidental to match.

Argentina elder planetary career

Yet numbers tin lone instrumentality america truthful far, and it would beryllium unfair to spot 2 icons from radically antithetic eras connected the aforesaid statistical scales, peculiarly erstwhile considering the punishing manner and astir chaotic aura that surrounded Maradona compared to Messi's much disciplined and meticulously maintained career.

Maradona's 91 appearances and 34 goals stay outstanding numbers for his era, particularly astatine a clip erstwhile planetary shot offered considerably less fixtures, portion his power was often measured not successful accumulation but successful moments of breathtaking value erstwhile Argentina needed their top subordinate to prehend control.

One could truthful antagonistic that Messi's longevity is not simply a merchandise of having much opportunities, but different bonzer accomplishment successful itself, with the left-footed genius remaining Argentina's cardinal fig for astir 2 decades portion carrying the value of anticipation that had erstwhile belonged to the archetypal master. 

Perhaps that is the simplest mode to framework the archetypal section of this debate: Maradona produced a highest that bordered connected the mythical, but Messi combined a likewise bonzer acme with an astonishingly precocious floor, sustaining greatness for agelong capable to crook an exceptional vocation into an astir unparalleled assemblage of work.

Messi's 2022 World Cup vs Maradona's 1986 World Cup

If Maradona's 1986 masterpiece represents the acme of idiosyncratic brilliance astatine a World Cup, past Messi's 2022 run stands arsenic possibly its closest Argentine heir - antithetic successful complexion, but nary little intoxicating successful its ain way.

Maradona was a unit of quality successful Mexico, scoring 5 goals and providing 5 assists arsenic Argentina conquered the world, but the earthy numbers lone scratch the aboveground of a tourney successful which virtually everything seemed to travel done the diminutive fig 10.

When the World Cup entered its unforgiving knockout phase, Maradona someway recovered different gear: 2 goals against England successful the quarter-final, the archetypal an infamous Hand of God that lone added to the astir supernatural aura surrounding him, and the 2nd a breathtaking solo effort that became known arsenic the Goal of the Century.

That archetypal goal, arguable yet immortalised, astir seemed to elevate Maradona beyond the realm of the mean footballer, portion the 2nd provided the artistry to complement the audacity - 2 moments successful the abstraction of minutes that encapsulated wherefore El Diego was opening to transcend shot and presume an astir almighty presumption successful the eyes of Argentina.

Messi's roadworthy to immortality successful Qatar was somewhat different, but arsenic relentless, with the Argentine skipper scoring 7 goals and providing 3 assists portion becoming the archetypal subordinate successful World Cup past to find the nett successful the radical stage, circular of 16, quarter-final, semi-final and last of the aforesaid tournament.

And erstwhile Argentina's imagination threatened to unravel, Messi was invariably determination - scoring against Australia, unlocking the Netherlands with a sublime assistance earlier converting from the spot, tormenting Croatia successful the semi-final and past striking doubly successful that unforgettable last against France.

There is besides thing wonderfully symmetrical astir the 2 triumphs: Maradona was 25 and operating astatine the implicit zenith of his carnal and originative powers, whereas Messi was 35, his explosive acceleration nary longer rather what it had been, but compensated by a footballing quality truthful refined that helium appeared to spot passages of play earlier everybody else.

Maradona's 1986 remains the much explosive idiosyncratic circuit de force, a tourney successful which 1 footballer seemed susceptible of bending the full contention to his will, portion Messi's 2022 triumph was the culmination of improvement - little hurricane, much grandmaster, choosing precisely erstwhile and wherever to present the decisive blow.

Messi vs Maradona stats: Copa America journey 

If the World Cup provides the grandest signifier for their rivalry, the Copa America tells a alternatively antithetic story, 1 successful which Messi endured years of heartbreak earlier yet turning the leafage and gathering a bequest that Maradona ne'er rather managed to replicate.

Messi reached 5 Copa America finals, enduring defeats successful 2007, 2015 and 2016 earlier yet ending his agelong hold for silverware by starring Argentina to triumph implicit Brazil astatine the Maracana successful 2021, bringing a 28-year drought without a elder men's planetary trophy to an extremity earlier lifting the continental crown again successful 2024.

Maradona, meanwhile, ne'er tasted Copa America occurrence arsenic a subordinate of Argentina's elder side, contempt being portion of the wider communicative surrounding the 1993 triumph portion absent from the tournament-winning squad, meaning Messi yet has 2 Copa America titles to his sanction and different important vantage successful the planetary honours debate.

For years, however, Messi's critics had ammunition successful the biggest matches, with the 2014 World Cup last followed by defeats successful the 2015 and 2016 Copa America finals creating the cognition that the Barcelona magician could not rather nutrient his finest interaction erstwhile Argentina needed it most.

That communicative has since been turned connected its head, with Messi captaining Argentina to triumph implicit Brazil successful the 2021 Copa America final, starring successful the 2022 Finalissima triumph implicit Italy and past scoring successful each knockout circular of the 2022 World Cup, earlier Argentina went connected to assistance the 2024 Copa America, though his injury-enforced aboriginal departure successful the last means that triumph should not beryllium dressed up arsenic different idiosyncratic Messi masterclass.

Messi vs Maradona: The last verdict

Perhaps the hardest portion of this statement is that neither man's bequest tin beryllium reduced to a spreadsheet, due to the fact that Maradona became a nationalist story done moments of astir intolerable drama, portion Messi built his lawsuit done an bonzer accumulation of excellence that yet stretched crossed generations.

Maradona's top statement volition ever beryllium the sheer unit of his peak, peculiarly that unforgettable 1986 run erstwhile helium seemed to resistance Argentina towards the World Cup astir single-handedly, producing moments of audacity, genius and theatre that helped alteration a footballer into thing approaching a mythical figure.

Messi, however, has the stronger statement erstwhile the full Argentina travel is placed connected the table, having endured the anguish of aggregate mislaid finals, carried the load of examination with Maradona for years and past returned to conquer the Copa America, the Finalissima and the World Cup, each portion becoming his country's astir prolific scorer and most-capped player.

And possibly that is what makes Messi's communicative truthful compelling: helium did not simply inherit Maradona's tremendous shadiness and past beneath it; helium spent 21 years walking done it, absorbing the anticipation of an full federation earlier yet creating a bequest that could basal connected its own, implicit with triumphs, heartbreak, redemption and an bonzer level of longevity.

In the end, possibly Argentina did not person to take betwixt 2 versions of greatness: Maradona gave the state its astir intoxicating footballing myth, portion Messi gave it a bequest built implicit 2 decades of brilliance, and unneurotic they signifier the 2 towering pillars of Argentina's shot history.

For the purposes of this debate, however, the numbers, the longevity and the silverware yet tilt the equilibrium towards Messi - not due to the fact that Maradona's fable has diminished, but due to the fact that Messi managed thing astir arsenic bonzer arsenic matching that legend: helium built 1 of his own.