As Lionel Messi prepares to leave the international stage, criticism aimed at him a decade ago sounds almost unrecognisable today. Once accused of lacking leadership and disappearing in major matches, Messi has transformed himself into Argentina’s most decorated modern footballer and, for many, the greatest player in the country’s history.
There was a time when Lionel Messi’s achievements with Barcelona were not enough to silence the doubts surrounding his performances for Argentina.
A decade ago, the debate was dominated by comparisons with another legendary Argentine No.10 — Diego Maradona.
Just weeks before Messi announced his first international retirement, Maradona delivered a remarkably critical assessment of the Barcelona superstar.
“He’s a really good person, but he has no personality,” Maradona said of Messi at the time, questioning whether he possessed the character required to lead Argentina.
Today, those comments appear almost laughable when viewed against everything Messi has achieved since.
When Messi was still living in Maradona’s shadow
The criticism was not simply about Messi’s ability.
For many Argentines, the problem was that he was constantly being measured against Maradona, the man who had almost single-handedly inspired Argentina to World Cup glory in 1986.
Messi, meanwhile, had already built one of the greatest club careers football had ever seen.
Before turning 30, he had won eight La Liga titles and four Champions League trophies with Barcelona, while also collecting five Ballon d’Or awards.
Yet his international résumé was considered incomplete.
His biggest international success at that stage was an Olympic gold medal with Argentina at the 2008 Beijing Games. Unlike Maradona, Messi had not yet delivered the senior World Cup or Copa America title that Argentine supporters craved.
That gap became the source of relentless criticism.
“He is not as good as Diego”
Messi was accused of failing to reproduce his Barcelona brilliance with Argentina.
The criticisms became increasingly personal.
He was told he was not as good as Maradona. He was accused of disappearing during important games. Some supporters even considered him part of the reason for Argentina’s repeated failures in major finals.
The pressure became particularly intense because Messi was not merely Argentina’s star player — he was also the team’s captain.
In Argentina, some critics labelled him “Pecho Frío”, a derogatory expression suggesting that he lacked emotional intensity or courage when the pressure was at its highest.
For a player who had dominated European football for years, the contrast was extraordinary.
At Barcelona, Messi was worshipped as a genius. With Argentina, he was often asked why he could not become the same player.
2016: The moment Messi said enough
The constant pressure eventually became too much.
Spanish football expert and Messi biographer Guillem Balagué has described how deeply defeats affected Messi and how the responsibility of captaining Argentina weighed heavily on him.
The breaking point came in 2016.
After Argentina lost the Copa América Centenario final to Chile on penalties, Messi announced his retirement from international football.
It was not an impulsive reaction to a single disappointing night. Argentina had suffered repeated final defeats, and Messi had endured enormous criticism throughout that period.
According to Balagué, this was the third time Messi had seriously considered walking away from the national team — but the first time he made the decision publicly.
For many, it appeared that one of the greatest footballers in history might never win a major international trophy with Argentina.
The comeback that changed everything
But Messi’s story did not end in 2016.
He returned to international football, and the years that followed completely transformed his legacy.
In 2021, Messi finally lifted a major senior international trophy with Argentina when they defeated Brazil in the Copa América final at the Maracanã.
That victory was hugely significant.
The player once criticised for failing to win anything with Argentina had finally delivered a major title.
But Messi was not finished.
World Cup glory finally ends the debate
The defining chapter came in Qatar in 2022.
Messi captained Argentina to the FIFA World Cup title, scoring twice in the final against France and producing one of the most memorable individual campaigns in World Cup history.
The image of Messi lifting the World Cup trophy became the ultimate answer to years of criticism.
The accusations that he could not lead Argentina disappeared.
The claims that he vanished on the biggest stage became increasingly difficult to defend.
And the argument that he could never match Maradona’s legacy was fundamentally transformed.
Messi subsequently added another major international trophy to his collection when Argentina won the 2024 Copa América, further strengthening his claim as the defining player of his generation.
The Maradona vs Messi debate has changed forever
As Messi’s international career approaches its conclusion, the old Maradona-versus-Messi argument looks very different.
For years, Maradona’s 1986 World Cup triumph was the ultimate argument in his favour.
Today, Messi has his own World Cup triumph, multiple Copa América successes and a remarkable collection of individual and team honours.
For many observers, the question is no longer whether Messi is better than Maradona.
Instead, the debate has expanded to whether Messi belongs at the very top of the list of the greatest footballers of all time, alongside or even ahead of icons such as Pelé and Maradona.
From ‘cold’ to captain, champion and legend
Perhaps the most remarkable aspect of Messi’s story is the complete reversal of perception.
The player once accused of lacking personality became the leader who lifted Argentina’s greatest prize.
The footballer accused of disappearing in major matches scored twice in a World Cup final.
The player criticised for failing to win with Argentina eventually delivered the Copa América and World Cup.
And the man who once appeared trapped in Maradona’s shadow eventually created a legacy of his own.
A decade ago, Messi was still being asked whether he could become Argentina’s next Maradona. Today, the question is much simpler: has Messi become Argentina’s greatest footballer?
For a growing number of fans, the answer is unequivocally yes.
