It is only when we are old and grey that many will finally realise the greatness of Lionel Messi.

When the dust settles on the duel between Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo the game of football will be poorer for it, because never have two such polar opposite characters so dominated the sport.

Messi is famous for shunning the limelight, preferring a life lived away from the cameras, whereas Cristiano has become accustomed to seeing his life splashed across the tabloids.

For some insight into Ronaldo’s life you should watch this doccie, but let’s stick with the Argentinian for now.

In a break from tradition, Messi allowed ESPN reporter Sam Borden a touch of insight into his life, mostly via his PR team, and as you may have guessed one of the things that came to light was how he drains his main vein.

[Ronaldo definitely stands when he pees – probably hanging from a pull-up bar or doing squats while he’s at it.]

To be fair the pee info actually comes from an interview on Uruguayan TV last year:

…last year he appeared on a Uruguayan television show with his close friend and Barca teammate Luis Suarez, the star of Uruguay’s national team. For much of the interview, Messi was happy to be something of a sidekick, but he became more animated while participating in a discussion on the age-old question of whether it is preferable for men to sit or stand while urinating (he sits).

When the host of the show expressed surprise and concern about the men soaking the toilet seat (Suarez said he pees sitting down as well), Messi calmly explained, “You just point it down,” while making a helpful hand gesture.

Strength in unity there from Suarez, renowned people biter.

The interview centres around trying to unpack why Messi is so keen to keep his life private, refusing to speak out about his views on certain matters.

Wise, or cowardly?

…Messi said, according to his PR team, that “today, there are people with a lot of interests and everyone wants to see things in the way that suits them. I prefer not to play this game.” The chosen trope, repeated often by those around Messi, is that soccer is the way Messi likes to express himself. And sure, fine, fair enough. Maybe there is some charm in that. Maybe there is sincerity that someone who is so skilled that on multiple occasions police have busted drug traffickers and seized bricks of cocaine that the dealers named after him (because, naturally, it was the best) wants to limit himself to sport and nothing more.

Maybe there is some simplicity in wanting to go through public life engaging only with that which is beautiful. But is that admirable? Or is it just weak?

When your football speaks so loudly, people are prone to giving you leeway:

When Messi returned to the national team last summer following his short-lived retirement, he did not do a lengthy news conference or teary sit-down. He released a short statement explaining that he still loved playing for his nation, then went out and scored a hat trick in a crucial World Cup qualifier that sent Argentina on its way to a place in Russia. It was pure Messi: Everyone knew how he felt; he didn’t need to say it.

Still, that doesn’t stop many from thinking they deserve more from the global sporting icon:

Do we expect more than that from our superstars? Or should we? It isn’t as though Messi doesn’t give us anything, you know. When he plays and the ball settles at his feet, he allows us to imagine with abandon, allows us to dream with our eyes open.

But we also know that once the ball rolls to the side, he will vanish. We know there will be no memorable advertising campaigns or political endorsements or social commentary or calls to action from Messi, know that he will not lead us anywhere other than toward the goal. With Messi, we will get only these instants. These moments. These flashes.

And it is enough because it has to be. Because Messi does not worry if we want more or need more than that from him, because Messi does not worry at all.

For the quietest superstar, the game is all that has ever mattered. The rest is just noise.

Even in an interview that does its best to get a look behind the curtain, the mystery of Messi remains unravelled.

You should read the full interview here.

[source:espn]