Prophet in a foreign land: Lionel Messi's identity conundrum

Messi after scoring in the Club World Cup final (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

Lionel Messi is a unique story outside of what he does on the pitch. People were bracing for his arrival onto the world football scene since he was 11 years old.  When he arrived he was one of those players that was ready to change the face of the game forever.  He was going to go beyond establishing himself as one of those players that was going to mark a generation and eventually sit among the football gods.

He was going to mark the game forever. He was going to be transcendental.  One of those players that would shine on any team in any moment in history.  His Hollywood movie script was already written.  There was just one problem... he didn´t want to go by it.

A victim of circumstance?  A child of globalization? A stroke of luck?

Well yeah, a little of all that and the some.  As a child he stood out because of his size and talent.  He was the smallest kid every time he stepped on those dirt pitched in Rosario yet he was bigger than all them in terms of natural talent and technical ability.  Let's be honest, when Barcelona saw what that pre-teen from Rosario did from the time  he was five and confirmed everything that his youth coach said about him...

...they immediately saw this...

  There were tall tales about what  that diminutive little boy was doing and there was no way that Barcelona was not going to have him in his ranks.  As soon as River Plate gave the thumbs down because of growth hormone issue, Barcelona went after this little boy despite there being resistance and a greater immediate necessity.  Yet as soon as they saw him all of the immediate necessities didn't matter anymore.  He was going to be the future of the game.   From pre-contract letters on napkins to promises to help out with his hormone treatments, Barcelona were not going to let this young man go.

He is an idol in Europe.  The face of the game in every aspect of the word.  The Old Continent hails him incessantly.  The camera bulbs flash all over, the spotlight is on him, In his native Argentina, the story is a little different. 

When you talk about the great Argentine players in history they have a team in which they are associated with in that country.   Maradona, Batistuta, Palermo, Riquelme, and Tevez are synonymous with Boca.  Passarella, Saviola, Aimar, with River.  Kempes with Rosario Central.  Bochini with Independiente.  Messi is associated with Newell´s but only because of his brief time in their academy.  This is part of why Messi is different than any other Argentine footballer ever. 

Sports talk radio in that country constantly displays the collective wrath that they have towards the Barcelona star.  For many he is the antithesis of that country's greatest football ambassador.  In forums, blogs, even esptablished newspapers they call him names like "pecho frío"- a term given to someone who is indifferent about winning or losing and doesn't feel anything about everything.  Those are the type of people that are most disliked in the Argentine football scene because the game is not meant to be played there- it's meant to be felt.

He's not Argentine.  He's Catalan.  He doesn't feel the national team jersey like Diego did.- Caller on Argentine radio.

 Why the anger?

 ¨Argentines are known for their fanaticism and for the love they have towards their colors.  Especially when it comes to the Albiceleste,¨ says We Are Fútbol´s Lucas Lugo. ¨Argentines expect Messi to be the savior of the national team which is rudderless these days.¨  

It is completely unrealistic to see Argentina play the same way as Barcelona if the battle plans are not drawn out the same way. ¨He can't play the same way he does at Barca; there people that create their own space and move without the ball are not there,¨ says Lugo.  That is what puzzles most people as Argentina have players like Tevez, Agüero, Verón, Aimar, Maxi Rodríguez, Javier Zanetti, and Javier Mascherano as part of that  nucleus that create play.  There are also youngsters coming onto the scene such as Ángel Di María, Mario Bollatti, Gonzalo Higuaín, and Javier Pastore are capable of making a big difference on the national team. 

Many times when things aren´t going right in any realm of life, people try to find something or someone to rally around- a person that is going to save the world.  The One.  He was annointed as The One and eventually was given unrealistic expectations.  He was supposed to single-handedly win the World Cup- like Diego Maradona did.  He was supposed to make Argentina great- like Maradona did.  He was supposed to lead the national team to the Promised Land- like Maradona did.  

Let's Be Honest...

The problems on the national team and the success in Barcelona are microcosms of what is currently going on in both places.  It is too difficult to look deep inside what is going on inside of AFA and point the finger at one thing that is going there that prevents the national team from truly taking off.  The problem with the national team from a tactical and technical standpoint is their coach´s inability to be organized as well as his insatiable addiction to the spotlight.  When things go wrong the person that will receive the brunt of the blow is its poster child- in this case Messi. 

Argentine fans are hypnotized every weekend watching Messi play for Barcelona.  They want to see that Messi play on the pitch.  There is just one thing they are overlooking- Argentina have individual talent, but collective is another story.  Argentina might have one of the most stunning lineups on paper, but there are several other teams that is why the expectations are so high.  

Messi celebrates after scoring the game winner on Saturday

Lionel Messi chests the ball home  (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)

In extra time on Saturday, Dani Alves found Messi checking to the near post from around the back of the Estudiantes defense.  Alves' pass was perfect and how fitting that Messi went airborne and buried the ball in the back of the net with none other that- yes- his chest. That ¨ice box¨ that Argentines jeered in various occasions and the local media bashed incessantly because it was the esay thing to do during World Cup Qualifiers brought any iota of hope that Estudiantes had left to come away with an historic upset went down in flames. Poetic justice, I guess.  In Argentina they had The Hand of God, now let´s welcome  The Chest of Lio.   Yes, that chest made the impossible, possible and Barca are now one international trophy away from equaling Real Madrid and Argentine side Indewith 15. 

When Lionel Messi scored the game-winning goal against Estudiantes on Saturday, some Argentine fans exploded and displayed their discontent online and on walls.  It was not necessarily at him, it was their displeasure towards his ability to be beyond Galáctico with the Blaugrana and offers mere mortal performances with the national team. 

When he won the Ballon D'Or a few weeks back, the common theme was that there was discord.  ¨I am not in favor of Me$$i (they write it this way because they think he sold out) winning the (Ballon D'Or). The award should be given to someone with a soul,¨ said a forum post.  They believe he does not give 100 percent to his team.  If Messi was truly playing for the money and not because of the love for the game; he would be wearing all white right now.  God only knows Florentino Pérez would have sold half of Madrid and thrown in Alfredo Di Stefano-  six decades later.

With the way things have changed in this globalized football world, Messi obviously assimilated to his new surroundings after being coddled and cared for by the entire village.  So if some Argentines feel that he is more Catalan now, that is totally preposterous.  His heart is with Argentina although Catalunya will always have a special place in his heart.  He has mentioned time and time again how grateful he is of Barca for giving him the chance to make his dream come true.  

 A Child of Globalization

This confusion comes because of him not developing or playing with a first team or even a reserve side in Argentina.  He did play for Newell's Old Boys when he was a kid but emigrated back in 2000 to Spain.   He is a sign of the times.  The norm has been throughout history that kids were developed in South American countries and then shipped off to Europe so that clubs, agents, and several individuals profit from him. Messi was the bar setter that established the craze to sign kids as young as eight and nine years old that are projected to be world beaters- to be the next Messi.   He was the nugget that started the gold rush.  

All of his tears and suffering to get where he is now have paid off... (duh, obvious statement).   Especially on that fateful day in Lisbon where he made his debut. With all of that, the shadow of Maradona still looms large over him.  For years Argentine football fans have been looking to fill that spot that El Diego left vacant so prematurely.  They felt like a little something was taken away from them.  That was why several players were looked at as an heir apparent.  There was just one problem, a player like Maradona can never be replaced. 

Messi has been the only player that has truly had that heavy Maradona comparison stick.  Although now with Barcelona being his team, he is proving to the world that he is no longer the next Maradona, he is the first Lio.