The Sports Guru
Football
Lionel Messi's last Argentina match was built as a ceremony, yet the football around him kept demanding his attention. This article asks what a 3-0 friendly against Benin reveals about the player Argentina are…
Every article The Sports Guru has published about Lionel Messi: 16 Football articles between 15 April 2026 and 7 October 2026, newest first. For wider coverage, see all Football analysis.
Football
David Beckham says Lionel Messi should win this year's Ballon d'Or - even though Messi's Argentina lost the World Cup final. This article sets out the case Beckham is making, the milestone goal that prompted…
Football
Lionel Messi has stepped away from Argentina duty for good. This article looks at what the numbers behind his 207 caps actually mean, and why the decision landed now rather than after Qatar four years ago.…
Football
Lionel Messi’s fine follows a 2-2 draw that carried far more friction than resolution for Inter Miami. This article explains why the incident matters alongside Miami’s place in the Eastern Conference and a…
Football
Editor's note: this piece is built entirely from BBC Sport's report on the World Cup 2026 Golden Boot standings following France's third-place play-off against England. Any framing beyond the reported facts is…
Football
England were five minutes from their first World Cup final since 1966, and then Argentina happened. This covers Anthony Gordon's opener, the two goals that came in the space of seven late minutes, why Thomas…
Football
The reigning world champions are through to the semi-finals, and England now know exactly who is waiting for them in Atlanta. This covers the corner Switzerland failed to defend twice in 10 minutes, the…
Football
Some knockout games ask a champion whether it still wants to be one, and for seventy-eight minutes in Atlanta Argentina had no answer. Egypt led 2-0, Lionel Messi had missed a penalty, and the holders were a…
Football
The mismatch on paper became one of the games of the World Cup on grass. This covers Argentina's 3-2 extra-time win over Cape Verde in the round of 32 at the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami: Lionel Messi's opener,…
Football
Lionel Messi against a 40-year-old goalkeeper whose contract at a Portuguese second-division club expired on Tuesday: the World Cup does not often serve up a contrast this stark. Drawing on the BBC's…
Football
Argentina had already qualified, made nine changes and still won comfortably, which tells you something about their depth. They beat World Cup debutants Jordan 3-1 in Dallas, with Lionel Messi coming off the…
Football
Lionel Messi went into Dallas level with Miroslav Klose and came out of it alone at the top of the World Cup's all-time scoring list. This piece looks at the night a 38-year-old missed a penalty, scored twice…
Football
Twenty years after making his World Cup debut, Lionel Messi produced the most significant individual performance of the 2026 tournament's opening days - a hat-trick that moved him level with the all-time…
Football
This piece examines one of sport's most enduring rivalries not through the usual GOAT lens, but through the shared origins, parallel ambitions and mutual pressure that made both players greater than they might…
Football
This piece looks beyond the headline number to examine what Ronaldo's sixth World Cup selection actually means for Portugal as a squad, for coach Roberto Martinez's tactical project, and for the sport's…
Football
Javier Mascherano has resigned as Inter Miami head coach just months after guiding the club to its first ever MLS Cup, citing personal reasons for his departure. His replacement until a permanent appointment…