Why Lionel Messi 'Owns Soccer,' According To Former Teammate

Lionel Messi’s former Barcelona teammate said that the six-time Ballon d’Or winner owns the game.

After dominating the sport for over a decade, Messi arguably got nothing to prove to everybody. However, the Argentine is still competing like he has never won a title before. In fact, he’s even more involved with Barcelona this season. He has faced off with the future Cristiano Ronaldo, Portugal's Joao Felix, and once got fed up when Barca suffered a losing streak a few weeks ago.

But what really made Messi above the rest is his natural-born talent. Speaking with TyC Sports , the current Estudiantes de La Plata player, Javier Mascherano, shared some thoughts about his former teammate, Messi, whom he played with for eight seasons in Barcelona.

According to Mascherano, Messi’s style allows him to play any type of game he wants. He even noted that with the said God-given talent, Messi could play “until he wants to.”

"Leo is going to play until he wants to. The understanding that Leo has of the game is unique. That gives you the potential to play until the age you want. For this reason it depends less on your physical attributes, as the understanding is in the head,” Mascherano explained.

Mascherano continued by pointing out that everybody has plotted a strategy against Messi. But somehow, the legendary player still manages to outperform his peers.

"We all know what he is going to do [on the pitch]. However, he always ends up being free. It's a crazy thing, he owns the game,” Mascherano continued.

Between the matches against Valencia at the Mestalla and Levante at the Camp Nou, the world has witnessed a different Messi. He had 19 shots but only two were on target. The Argentine was imprecise with his shooting but redeemed himself with his two-assists for Ansu Fati.

After orchestrating the most important goals against Valencia, Messi seemed to prove that he can hurt the opposing team in any way he wanted. The Messi in the last few games has been measuring his efforts more than usual. Unlike the Messi who is famous for not doing anything for nothing, the one who played against Valencia and Levante was evidently relaxed and patient.

Though it’s a bit too early to assume, but Messi is starting to have a different approach to the game. Nevertheless he still proves that he can lead Barcelona to victory without scoring when he ushered Fati to back-to-back goals that made history for the club.