UEFA Champions League Final 2015: FC Barcelona player ratings
RF Lionel Messi 7.5
You can sit there and pick apart Messi’s performance all you’d like, because he did literally slip-up at times and had some mis-timed passes to go with a wasted free-kick from 25 meters out. But Messi’s job in this game was to be the playmaker, and the man who often wears many hats for Barcelona’s attacks came through in that role. In a way, he played the usual Neymar role for the offense, as he, per WhoScored.com, finished with a whopping ten dribbles won and led the team with 99 touches (Dani Alves was second with 90).
And while Messi didn’t contribute anything defensively and had just one key pass, his lone shot on target of the night led to Suarez’s goal, though he was somewhat lucky for that. Juventus did a great job of defending Messi by making him do a lot of work taking on defenders but producing little in the form of a final product, but it’s a testament to the Argentinian’s transcendental greatness that he played so well despite how perfectly Juve played him.
The opposition did all they could to keep Messi in their pockets, but he still made a huge impact on the game with his never-seen-before dribbling and close control. Yes, he could have been better, but you could say that for any player. He is simply unplayable with the ball at his feet, and he was, as always, an invaluable part of La Blaugrana’s record attack.
Next: And Suarez?