234SPORTS: LIONEL MESSI BREAKS ANOTHER RECORD

Lionel Messi has broken another important soccer record, and this time, it's one that has many discussing whether the young player is the greatest to ever play the sport. Messi trumped Brazilian soccer legend Pele by breaking his scoring record in a calendar year.
Messi, 25, scored 64 goals for Barcelona and also scored 12 goals with Argentina earlier this year, which puts his total at 76 goals on the year, just one past Pele's record. Messi has long been regarded by many as the best soccer player in the world, and now, there's reason to believe that he's the greatest soccer player of all time.

Pele previously held the record for most goals scored in a calendar year by a soccer player. Pele had scored goals for the club Santos and for the Brazilian National team.
"Leo's records are spectacular," said Barcelona's coach Tito Vilanova " It's spectacular when you think that he scores so many goals. Some few players reach these numbers in seven or eight seasons, he does it in one. And most of his goals are great goals."
In a roundtable discussion held by the Telegraph prior to Messi's scoring record, football experts weighed in on who they thought was the greatest player of all time. Most agreed that Messi is already in the discussion of being one of the best players ever, and in many ways, Messi still has many years to prove his dominance.
"I had the pleasure of once sharing the same pitch with Diego Maradona. Up until now, he is the best player I had ever seen. Yet Messi takes things further. Not only is he incredibly talented, his steady temperament makes him a much more dependable teammate. Without question the best ever," wrote Alan Smith, a former England international player.
Current striker for England Wayne Rooney echoed Smith's sentiment. "Messi is a joke. For me the best ever," wrote Rooney on Twitter prior to the latest record broken.
The mesmerizing play of Messi comes at a time when international soccer has become more popular and competitive than ever before. The game is played at a faster pace than ever in history, and its politics are more heightened than ever. Despite increasing competition from all sides, Messi has maintained a dignified image and continues to find ways to score goals.

Messi scores goals in every single way you can imagine. For someone that's just 5'7", he's managed to head the ball into the net in some of the most crucial games he's ever participated in. He's also scored from far outside the box and deep into the box. Even the untrained eye can identify Messi's excellence without much knowledge of the game. He's speed, quickness, strength and, perhaps most importantly, his in-game intelligence is what makes him one of the greatest ever.
So is Messi the greatest soccer player of all time?
Whether you're judging based on style or on pure arithmatic, it's hard to deny that it gets any better than Messi. He's won on the biggest stage, and he's one of the most consistent players ever. Now, he has the goal-scoring record to prove it.