Messi vs. Robinho

There’s no shortage of young players who could play a huge role at this summer’s World Cup. The two that I am most keen to see on the world’s biggest stage might not have a huge role on either of their star studded teams, however. I’m going to be pulling for Argentina’s Lionel Messi and Brazil’s Robihno both to do well, if for no other reason than I’d love to see a rivalry develop between the two at the international level.

The two supremely talented youngsters are different players, but because one plays for Barcelona and Argentina, and the other plays for Real Madrid and Brazil, it is only natural that they are going to be compared to one another. The prospect of both eventually reaching their primes and realizing their promise at the same time will only add to the intensity and joy of South America’s greatest rivalry.

If you were to ask me which player is better at the present, I would probably go with Messi, but only by the slimmest of margins. Watching him play in the U20 championship, I fell in love with the kid’s game. His vision and touch are amazing. Even with a talented stable of scorers in tow, I don’t see how Argentina coach Jose Pekerman can keep him off the pitch in Germany. He is too good to sit. I hope he gets a chance.

To me Robinho is like a magician on the ball and his moves are unreal enough to take your breath away. I still think he needs to develop some consistency and get a little stronger. I also think he will benefit from being part of a Brazil team that has so much firepower that he won’t be expected to do anything else other than to contribute. Like Messi, I believe his best days are still a few years away.

I’m sure our Argentina and Brazil bloggers have their opinion on which one is better. The beautiful thing is that if both players continue to develop we might be debating this again in 2010 and years beyond.