9781422270745

CHAPTER 1

Greatest Moments

PROLIFIC PLAYMAKER Lionel Messi showed up on soccer’s world stage turning heads as a talented teenager, and for more than two dynamic decades ever since, he has been dazzling and dominating with prolific playmaking that has pushed him into the conversation of the greatest player ever. A game changing force and the ultimate creator of magic and mayhem with the ball at his feet, the awesome Argentinian’s legendary career has been filled with a never-ending string of epic goals, hard-to-believe passes, and staggering, record-setting production season after season. The owner of an astounding all-time best seven Ballon d’Or trophies, awarded to the world’s best soccer player, Messi has hoarded many of the sport’s most sacred and hard-to-get records. He was the fastest player to reach the 100-goal mark in Champions League matches, needing just 123 games; he posted a record-setting 50-goal season in 2011–2012; and indicative of his lethal longevity, Messi is the only player to score 40 or more goals in 10 consecutive seasons.

7

Greatest Moments