A lack of passion is not a phrase that is branded around often in modern day football – especially against those who are amongst the best players on the planet.
However, back in December 2020, former Benfica boss Jorge Jesus claimed that Lionel Messi has “no passion” in a scathing assessment of the seven-time Balon d’Or winner. To make matters worse, Jesus also admitted that Messi’s fiercest competitor, Cristiano Ronaldo, was more like Diego Maradona.
At that point, Messi was still at Barcelona and had lifted every major honour there was to win in the game – apart from the Copa America and World Cup with Argentina. They were the two that had alluded him, having previously won the Champions League and league titles on numerous occasions.
Speaking to ESPN in 2020, Jesus said: “In my opinion, Maradona was the greatest player in history, with Pele. Pele is still here, he is alive. Maradona was the greatest, not only for what he was as a genius and player, but for the way he showed. That made the difference to me.
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“He was a world top, but he had a passion for the game, he was born to be a football player, he was born with everything. It is not a worked product, he was born that way. Love, all the feeling he had with the ball.
“Nowadays, between the two best in the world, Ronaldo has a little bit of that, Messi has nothing. He has nothing… of passion. He is a great player.”
Jesus later clarified: “Be careful not to misinterpret. As for Messi, we are talking about what life and feeling is about, having a passion for the game and football. I think Maradona was even prominent in this regard in relation to other.”
Fast forward two-and-a-half years and Messi now has the Copa America and the World Cup to his trophy cabinet, having most recently secured the latter in Qatar last December.
Something that was prevalent in both of those successes was in fact… passion. During Argentina’s dramatic penalty shootout win over France in the World Cup final, Messi was one of the most enthusiastic players on the pitch and almost single-handedly carried his side over the line.
It could be seen on Messi’s face how much it meant to him and the raw passion he displayed throughout the whole tournament, but especially in the final, was clear. The 36-year-old was determined to win the first World Cup of his career and he also knew how much it meant to the nation’s supporters.
Messi was one of the first to highlight the “passion” of the Argentina fans out in the Middle-East, and every single player, including the ex-Barcelona star, fed off that onto the pitch.
Speaking after their 2-1 last-16 win over Australia, Messi said: “These are amazing feelings. I’m really happy to share this beautiful moment, these happy moments with them all. The effort they are making to be here with us in every single match. I know how much they enjoy it back in Argentina.
“The whole of Argentina would like to be here, but it’s not possible. I think there’s this bond that we have, this union, which is something beautiful. It’s unbelievable what they transmit, the passion, their energy, their joy and we’re very thankful. It’s unbelievable.”
Messi was in impeccable form throughout the competition, netting seven times including a hat-trick in the final against France. But his individual form and scoring record would not have mattered to him if Argentina did not win the World Cup – eight years after losing in the final against Germany.
