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Lionel Messi's evolution as a player: From Ronaldinho's Barcelona understudy to GOAT candidate

For more than 15 years, Lionel Messi has been Barcelona's main man, scoring and assisting hundreds of goals and winning countless trophies. But how has his game changed over time as he has aged and his supporting cast has changed? Gab Marcotti digs into the data.

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2019-12-07T215056Z_469665432_RC2LQD9L67F

Lionel Messi's evolution as a player: From Ronaldinho's Barcelona understudy to GOAT candidate

For more than 15 years, Lionel Messi has been Barcelona's main man, scoring and assisting hundreds of goals and winning countless trophies. But how has his game changed over time as he has aged and his supporting cast has changed? Gab Marcotti digs into the data.

Breaking through at Barcelona (2003-08)

Lionel Messi stood out among his peers from a young age. While youth coaches love to talk about developing and nurturing talent, the reality is Messi had such an evident and well-defined skill set -- far above teammates and opponents -- that ensuring he had the ball as much as possible was his quickest path to success.

He could dribble, he was fast, he had great timing when running from deep and he could score goals. And because he could do all of that in tight spaces, the easiest thing was to put him in the middle of the action. He played at the top of the diamond in the 3-4-3 formation that most of Barcelona's youth teams used, with freedom and licence to turn into a second striker.

At 17, he began playing regularly for Barcelona B -- sometimes in attacking midfield, sometimes wide on the left -- while accumulating a few minutes for the first team. The following season, 2005-06, he had turned 18 and became a regular in coach Frank Rijkaard's senior setup.

The Dutchman used a 4-3-3 system, so Messi's "in the hole" role did not exist. Too slight and inexperienced to play up front on his own, the only possible destination for him was out wide. And because there was, understandably, a hierarchy -- Barcelona had won the Spanish title the previous season -- he split time on the right wing with Ludovic Giuly.

It is pretty standard, even for the most talented ones, that young players are eased into a first team playing a role that builds confidence. Many No. 10s and center-forwards start out wide as traditional wingers, with the idea to give them space, minimise responsibility and make it as straightforward as possible. If they are right-footed, for example, they play on the right flank and are tasked with running at full-backs, beating them and putting in crosses.

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2019-12-07T215056Z_469665432_RC2LQD9L67F
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