Messi wins The Best 2023 award

Leo Messi's legacy is timeless and the Argentinian star is in charge of proving it no matter how much time passes. The No.10 is considered the best footballer on the planet and, once again, he once again won an individual award.

Messi was awarded FIFA's The Best 2023. He beat Erling Haaland and Kylian Mbappe in the voting and was able to revalidate a trophy he already won in 2022, with the World Cup won in Qatar as a great reason.

His sporting career is full of both collective and individual successes. Although the 'Pulga' no longer plays in Europe and has moved to a league, a priori, of a lower level such as the MLS, his influence continues to be notable. So much so that, in his first season at Inter Miami, the Argentinian led his side to the first title in their history, the Leagues Cup.

At a newly-formed club presided over by former footballer David Beckham, Messi is already part of their history. He is the fourth top scorer with 11 goals in 14 games played. In addition, he also stands out in terms of assists (5).

However, before his golden retirement, the Argentinian star had already made his mark at PSG. There, the No.10 made a total of 75 appearances and scored 32 goals, playing a key role in the Parisians' success and forming a lethal partnership with Kylian Mbappe. In fact, he provided the most assists between those two seasons and was second only to Mbappé in terms of attacking contribution.

His dribbling and playfulness remained intact, as if time did not pass for Leo Messi. He was the second most successful dribbler, as well as one with the most goal-scoring opportunities, only behind Mbappe. The Argentinian star was undoubtedly one of those who had the most shots on target in those 75 games (103).

However, all of this pales in comparison to his time at Barcelona, where he spent much of his playing career and flourished as the player we know today. Messi left the 'Cules' after 17 seasons and with a whopping 778 games played and 672 goals to his name.

There is no doubt that he is a part of the 'Cules' crest. The club's all-time top scorer, as well as the player who has played the most games in the history of the club. In addition, he provided a whopping 265 assists. The Argentinian star also wrote a golden page in La Liga, being the all-time top scorer (474), as well as assisting (193).

A legacy for the ages

 Leo Messi has won many individual awards that have only enhanced his status as a footballer. He has won the Ballon d'Or on up to eight occasions, the latest being this past 2023 and placing him at the top as the player with the most awards of this kind.

In addition, it is the 3rd time he has won FIFA's The Best award since its creation, thus breaking the tie with Cristiano Ronaldo and Robert Lewandowski, who have two. To all this we must add the 6 Golden Boots he has won, as well as the 8 La Liga top scorer awards.

At national team level and despite some moments of criticism, Leo Messi has always been the reference and leader that the 'Albiceleste' always needed. He won the Golden Ball at the 2014 and 2022 World Cups and at the Copa América in 2015 and 2021. A host of individual awards that were overshadowed by his great achievement, the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.

The end of Leo Messi's sporting career is drawing ever closer, but what is clear is that the Argentinian star has made millions of fans enjoy this beautiful sport called football.