Saturday night witnessed another stellar performance by Lionel Messi who netted a spectacular hat trick against Celta Vigo to secure Barcelona's 8th win of the season. Not one of the best outings for a team like Barca, but in a night like this, only one man steps up and you couldn't have thought of any other person if not the Argentine wizard. Thee game culminated in a 4-1 win for the Catalan giants, but Ernesto Valverde will be more grateful to his captain whose genius have continued to cover his managerial ineptitudes, it's just a question of how long Messi will continue to be the only source of Barcelona's salvation. The 32 year old and the father of three seems to be getting my Lethal with set pieces these days. While the talisman may be reducing in terms of speed and strength to make long dribbles as usual, his accuracy in terms f taking free kicks and spot kicks is at its peak.
The football world and mostly Messi's detractors have been Waiting for the five time Ballon d'or winner to decline with his age, however, it seems the 32 year old is still far from career decline, and has continued to wreck havoc in a very unpredictable manner. Last season, he singlehandedly shouldered Barcelona even in their European adventure, and this is playing out again this season. In a time like this when Barcelona are unfortunate to have Ernesto Valverde as their manager, Messi has refused to allow the pride of the Catalan club to be trampled upon. The arrival of Antonie Grizemann seems to have added little or nothing to the squad as expected, and with Luiz Suarez age catching up on the Uruguayan striker, Messi's genius remains the propelling force behind the Laliga Champions front line. Dembele is also a good supporter of Barcelona's attack, but his unstable demeanour on the pitch and incessant injuries makes his an unreliable player.
Yesterday's game against Celta Vigo reflected how Barcelona have dwindled in form under Valverde, and though Messi pulled a stunt to fire the team to the top of the league, Barca still appears not ready for Champions league glory. Messi's goals yesterday against Celta must have put an end to the protracted argument of who is the best Free kick taker in the world. If I'm not mistaking, four of Messi's nine goals this season are free kicks, isn't that spectacular! He is already on the chase to become the league tope scorer despite arriving late and missing out in some matches due to injuries. His hat trick against Celta on Saturday night made it 8 goals for him in the league, just one goal behind Real Madrid's on fire Benzema who currently sits at the top with 9 league goals. “It’s clear that when it’s so close we have the advantage of having the best player in the world and the best free-kick taker in the world. He’s been improving and that’s an advantage, I hope he keeps scoring them, " said Sergio Busquets after the match. In all, Messi still remains the man to mark, it's just a matter of how long he will continue to remain there.
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