Lionel Messi's brilliance sent holders Barcelona through to the Champions League quarter-finals with a 4-0 dismantling of VfB Stuttgart on Wednesday.
India's Test captain and numero uno batsman Virat Kohli has been named as 'Third Most Marketable Sportsperson' in the world ahead of football superstar Lionel Messi, world No 1 tennis player Novak Djokovic in a latest survey published by magazine 'SportsPro'. Kohli is ranked behind NBA's 'Most Valuable Player' Stephen Curry and Juventus' French international Paul Pogba. Incidentally, Kohli is just ahead of golfer Jordan Spieth. Djokovic is 23rd in the list, followed by Messi at 27th and 'Sprint King' Usain Bolt at 31.
Lionel Messi may often be criticized for not showing the same spark for his country Argentina as for his club Barcelona, but the national team's midfielder Jonas Gutierrez and defender Pablo Zabaleta feel that the Argentine superstar gives his 100 per cent while representing his nation.
Lionel Messi won the inaugural UEFA Best Player in Europe award on Thursday, finishing ahead of Barcelona teammate Xavi and Real Madrid's Cristiano Ronaldo.
'We were aware that if we didn't win it would be more complicated.'
After picking fifth Ballon d'Or, Ronaldo's reignites eternal debate
After underwhelming early performances, traditional Latin American top dogsArgentina and reigning African champions Nigeria have something to prove when they meet in their final World Cup Group F match on Wednesday.
Luka Modric has played almost 600 games for Real and won nearly 30 trophies including a record six Champions League titles and four LaLiga trophies.
Lionel Messi was sent off before half-time and then angrily hit out at "corrupt" tournament organisers after Argentina beat Chile 2-1 to win a bad-tempered third-place playoff at the Copa America on Saturday.
Portugal forward Cristiano Ronaldo was given a chance to defend his World Player of the Year title on Monday when he was named on the shortlist for this year's accolade.
Lionel Messi announced on Friday that he wants to return to play for the national team, reversing his decision to retire earlier this year. Messi said in June that he would not play for Argentina again after the team lost to Chile in the final of the Copa America.
Chhetri still takes advice from former captain Bhutia who has a huge influence on him.
Lionel Messi needs one goal to equal the Barcelona scoring record after Cesar Rodriguez's total was revised to 232 from 235, the La Liga club said.
Former Germany and Bayern Munich striker Gerd Mueller's record of 85 goals in a calendar year will stand for a little longer after Barcelona decided to rest Lionel Messi for a midweek outing in the King's Cup against lowly Alaves.
Lionel Messi mesmerised Manchester United into submission on Saturday as his dazzling Barcelona team claimed an emphatic 3-1 win in the Champions League final to bag their third European crown in six seasons.
At the age of 23, Barcelona's Lionel Messi has already come to define an era of European soccer in a way only a handful of players have managed since the days of Alfredo di Stefano.
A Lionel Messi masterclass, netting a brilliant free kick before laying on two more goals, put Argentina's World Cup qualifying campaign back on track with a resounding 3-0 win over Colombia in San Juan on Tuesday.
Diego Maradona dreams of seeing his newborn son Diego Fernando playing for Argentina with the offspring of Lionel Messi and Sergio Aguero, he said on Tuesday.
Saudi Arabia, FIFA's 51st ranked team and who have suffered 5-0 and 8-0 World Cup defeats down the years, roared back to claim an astonishing 2-1 victory that will go down as one of the greatest shocks in any sport ever.
Lionel Messi, who turns 23 on Thursday, captained his country for the first time on Tuesday and gave another virtuoso performance as Argentina beat Greece 2-0 to reach the second round of the World Cup.
Brazil, who are fifth in the CONMEBOL table with 18 points from 12 games, host Colombia on March 21 and visit Argentina five days later in a match that could see Neymar come up against former Barcelona and Paris St Germain teammate Lionel Messi.
Rather like tennis's serial record breaker Roger Federer, Barcelona striker Lionel Messi cannot seem to finish a soccer match without ticking off another milestone.
Argentina and Barcelona forward Lionel Messi, still only 24, won the World Player of the Year award for the third time in a row on Monday.
Lionel Messi says Argentina have felt the presence of the late, great Diego Maradona throughout their World Cup campaign, including on Friday when they beat the Netherlands on penalties to reach the semi-finals.
Barcelona coach Luis Enrique hailed hat-trick hero Lionel Messi as the greatest player in the world "in every position" after the Argentine maestro sent another record tumbling in a thumping 7-0 Champions League win over Celtic.
Lionel Messi has dismissed talk of chasing records after the Argentine struck twice in Wednesday's 5-0 Champions League win at BATE Borisov to equal Ladislau Kubala as Barcelona's second highest scorer of all time on 194 goals.
Lionel Messi fired Barcelona into the last 16 of the Champions League with two goals in their 3-0 victory at Spartak Moscow on Tuesday but holders Chelsea are walking a tightrope after a crushing defeat by Juventus.
Lionel Messi's sublime double gave Barcelona a 2-0 win over Real Madrid in a tempestuous Champions League semi-final first leg which saw Real finish the game with 10 men and with coach Jose Mourinho in the stands.
Lionel Messi scored a hat-trick as Argentina beat arch-rivals Brazil 4-3 in an end-to-end friendly on Saturday, dealing a blow to the Brazilians as they wrapped up their preparations for the London Olympics.
France will look to boss the midfield in a bid to limit supply to the lethal 31-year-old, who has struggled to impose himself in the tournament.
No amount of preparation is enough to snuff out the threat of Argentina's "assassin" Lionel Messi, Panama coach Hernan Dario Gomez said ahead of Friday's Copa America clash between the teams. Messi was an unused substitute in Argentina's 2-1 win over holders Chile in their opening Group D match in Santa Clara, California on Monday after a back injury but will reappear when they face Panama in Chicago. "Leo trained normally, he will play," coach Gerardo Martino told a news conference on Thursday. Both sides have three points after Panama marked their first appearance in the world's oldest international tournament with a surprise 2-1 win over Bolivia, who face Chile in Foxborough on Friday.
Argentina-born Pope Francis, who died on Monday, is being honoured at his local hometown soccer club in Buenos Aires, San Lorenzo de Almagro, where the football-loving head of the Roman Catholic Church remained a member during his 12-year papacy.
Paraguay's Lucas Barrios scored in the 90th minute to give his side a dramatic 2-2 draw against Argentina in the Copa America in Santiago, on Saturday.
Barcelona's Lionel Messi is the best player ever, Bayern coach Pep Guardiola said.
Factbox on Barcelona and Argentina forward Lionel Messi, who became his country's all-time top goalscorer on Tuesday when he scored his 55th international goal.
Lionel Messi's Argentina put the love of their fans to a new test in a World Cup qualifier against Paraguay on Friday after the thrill of their captain's nine goals in five games.
Lionel Messi has Ronaldinho and rough competition from his brothers to thank for a seamless move into big time soccer
The Copa America 2021 championship final will be played between Brazil and Argentina from 05:30 am IST Sunday in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Following is a factbox detailing a selection of key moments in Lionel Messi's Barcelona career.
