00:00Lionel Messi, probably 500,000 times in my life already, is, yeah, probably the best player I saw in my
00:10lifetime, that's how it is.
00:13Lionel Messi already had claims to the title of the greatest footballer in history before the 2022 World Cup,
00:20but victory in Qatar gave the Argentine a stranglehold on the mantle.
00:25Everyone has his opinion, but nobody can doubt that he's there with the greatest all the time.
00:31For me, I said many times, I've been the, he's the best.
00:38If he would not have win the World Cup, the opinion about what he has done for the World Football,
00:44in my opinion, personal opinion, that how he's a player would not change absolutely anything.
00:52Those things that Messi has done for World Football are both tangible and esoteric.
00:59There's the record eight Ballon d'Or awards, an Olympic gold medal,
01:03and the only two-time winner of the FIFA World Cup golden ball.
01:10Then there's the manner in which those trophies have been achieved.
01:14The quick feet, the vision, the unrivaled ability to unlock the tightest of defences.
01:22Messi was the jewel in the crown of the Barcelona side that dominated European football,
01:28allowing Pep Guardiola to perfect the most brilliant attacking style the game had ever seen.
01:35I imagine that during Di Stefano's era, people used to say there was nobody like him.
01:39And then when Cruyff came along, people said there was nobody like him.
01:43With Maradona also, there was nobody like him.
01:45I will also mention Pelé, because I don't want him to be offended.
01:49Nowadays, the throne belongs to this kid, and only he will decide until when.
01:57Despite Messi's undoubted brilliance,
01:59the criticism hanging over him for the majority of his career
02:02was that he only performed at club level.
02:08Four World Cups delivered only frustration,
02:11and the Copa America, too, remained out of reach.
02:14It seemed one of the most magical artists to ever grace the game
02:18was destined to leave unfulfilled.
02:23At age 34, entering the final act of his storied career,
02:28Messi left the home comforts of the camp now
02:31for the unfamiliarity of the Parc des Princes.
02:36He went on to star in the 2021 Copa America,
02:39ending the tournament the top scorer and its best player.
02:43He lifted the trophy for the first time in his career
02:46in the most fitting stadium imaginable,
02:49Rio de Janeiro's Maracanã, home of arch-rivals Brazil.
02:57Finally, Messi and Argentina dared to dream.
03:03There is a lot of excitement about a positive World Cup.
03:09We won the Copa America.
03:11After trying so many times,
03:13I finally managed to win a title with a national team.
03:20So after that trophy,
03:22there is a lot of excitement for what is ahead of us.
03:29Messi's World Cup career began with back-to-back
03:32quarter-final exits in 2006 and 2010.
03:37At the 2014 World Cup in Brazil,
03:40he captained Argentina
03:42and dragged them almost single-handedly to the final.
03:45He also took home the golden ball
03:47as the tournament's best player,
03:49but was powerless to stop Germany
03:51capping their incredible renaissance.
03:54More heartbreak followed in 2018 in Russia,
03:58when a nervy group stage led to a round of 16 defeat
04:01to eventual champions France.
04:06But 2022 was the crowning glory.
04:11Despite a shock-opening defeat to Saudi Arabia,
04:15Messi guided the Alba Celeste to the top of Group C,
04:18then scored in every knockout match
04:20as Australia, the Netherlands, Croatia
04:22and finally France were overcome,
04:25the latter following a gripping penalty shootout.
04:31It was the fairy tale ending to a magical career.
04:37I've always said that collective awards
04:39are better than individual ones.
04:44And for every player to win a World Cup
04:46is the pinnacle.
04:51So is there now any doubt
04:52over the mantle of the greatest?
04:56He's the best footballer in the world
04:58and the best of all time.
05:00The record goalscorer in the history of La Liga,
05:03the most recorded assists in football history
05:06and named in the FIFPro World XI
05:09for a preposterous 17 consecutive seasons.
05:14Nobody has ever graced football's greatest stage,
05:17like Lionel Messi.
