Every section of the media is going gaga over Messi surpassing Maradona's goal tally for Argentina.
A quick search and comparison reveals that Messi scored 35 goals in 82 appearances. A lot better is Hernan Crespo who scored 35 goals in 64 appearances for Argentina.
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| Gabriel Batistuta |
But, the undisputed champion is indeed Gabriel Batistuta with 56 goals in 78 matches. Popularly known as 'Batigol', he is one of the only four players ever to have scored a hat-trick in 2 different World Cups.
Which brings us to - Is Messi really the greatest? Or is his greatness a figment of media's imagination? Or are the kind of goals, that he scores for Barcelona, a result of Xavi's or Iniesta's talent and effort?
A point to be noted is that he hasn't really performed well (given his brilliance) for Argentina, so far.
While there's no doubt that goal scoring does require great skill but a playmaker's role is quite vital as he feeds the ball to the striker.
So, one could say that Messi's greatness is a by product of the skill and value that a Xavi Hernandes or an Andres Iniesta bring to the field. They are the ones who equip Messi with goal scoring opportunities.
The same could be said about life in the corporate world where sales and business development teams are pampered with the best salaries, the best perks and quick promotions.
What goes unnoticed and unrewarded, are the efforts put in by the support staff that equip them to sell and promote the business. These are the employees behind the scene who ensure every transaction goes through and all operations function smoothly so that the folks at the front end can commit and deliver the promised product / service to the customer.
It's never about an individual but a team that works as a cohesive unit, that brings about desired results. One can only hope that the fans who idolise Messi, realise the efforts made by his 'support staff' and give them their due credit, as well.
Sanjeev, agree with your views completely. Specifically in team sports, one cannot but stress the importance of a collective performance rather than individual brilliance - refer to the no of times Tendulkar has scored a century in a losing cause. In fact in cricket while individual performances can still completely alter the complexion of a match (specially in the shorter formats), football is more a team game- think the brand of football played by Germany or Italy with an emphasis on team effort over the years.
ReplyDeleteOn the corporate side, your obervations about the bonus/ incentive structures are valid but that is largely because of the nature of the job (content and delivery) in sales or biz development. However, there are organisations like Google, 3M etc who have started rewarding employees for innovative thinking amongst other parameters.
Same goes with movies - the lead actors get away with most of the credit that an entire unit worked the skin off their backs for..
ReplyDeleteThen again, such is life!
However, Messi's popularity comes from the additional entertainment he brings to the play and something beautiful is always considered better than something more effective.
But really, his inability to score for Argentina exposes him more than anything else. He is definitely not the greatest, IMHO.