Topic: FIFA World Cup 2026 :Canada/Mexico/United States: Discussion Thread - page 221. (Read 67874 times)

Brazil has a culture of producing young star players. You would be surprised to see a new set of Brazilian young players that will win the world cup. Pele was seventeen years old when he won the first world cup with Brazil in 1958 and four years after he led them to win the next world cup in 1958 and 1970 he won his last world cup. Diego Maradona was twenty-five years old in the 1986 world cup in Mexico when he won the prestigious cup. I can keep naming more young players that led their countries to succeed in the world cup.

Brazil and Argentina produce more players than most countries in the world. It will be unsurprising to see a new set of quality Brazilian players wearing the Samba Boys jersey in the FIFA World Cup 2026 co-hosted by Canada/Mexico/the United States

Around Kaka, Ronaldo and others, there have always been many players of a close level. Rivaldo, Roberto Carlos, etc. that whole team was stellar. Now Brazil has Neymar, Vinicius, but if we take teams as a whole, then its average level is not much higher than other teams and is equal to the rest of the top teams. Probably the only team that stands out now with a set of players is France. And they confirm this with results. Individual star players like Haaland, in the absence of close-level support, cannot show anything outstanding.

I would say that Brazil never had any problems with talents and even strong players who belong to the top elite soccer players in the world. In the recent past or during the last few tournaments they had more trouble to build a cohesive team. One that fits together perfectly and that can play as we have been knowing Brazil for a long time. They have a lot of exceptional individual players, but they couldn't build the ties between all these exceptional players and develop a team that feels united and fights as a unit for their success. As soon as they can solve that problem, the times will come back when Brazil is the team that must be beaten in order to win the World Cup.

I'm aware of the talents of the Brazilian players but still the Brazil we see right now is not in a good performance like were years ago and there are not any superstar players like Kaka, Ronaldo, etc... in this team anymore. Even players like Neymar can't have the same performance we saw from then in the last years,

Brazilian players generally play in European leagues, but there is no guarantee that the next World Cup will be very promising, even if they talk about the quality of the players they have above the average quality of other players. The Qatar World Cup is an illustration of how they failed to look good and they even had to suffer defeat by the Croatian team on penalties.

The talents of Brazilian players have never been lost on the national football scene and in every World Cup appearance there have always been their players who have been able to steal the public's attention. Even though in the next world cup they have to lose Neymar who is no longer in the best condition due to age, Brazil will still be strong and there will be other players who will replace him at the next World Cup. But I'm not sure they can come out as champions and in comparison maybe we can see how they played in the Qatar World Cup.

I agree that Messi was the most important player for Argentina in winning the world title.
However, the same cannot be said for Ronaldo and his performance in Qatar.
Ronaldo did not play at his usual level and Portugal started to play well in attack only when Ronaldo was dropped from the Portugal first team.
Instead of accepting the coach's decision, Ronaldo rebelled and brought discord into the team, and the media wrote more about why Ronaldo is not playing than about the Portuguese national team. The atmosphere in the team was broken and I think that is the main reason why Portugal was not successful at the last world cup in Qatar.

If you are trying to imply that it is the sole responsibility of the athletes to protest against the human rights abuses happening in Saudi Arabia and other countries? Messi's own country (Argentina) maintain business and political ties with Saudi Arabia, so do countries such as the United States and France. As far as I know, there are no sanctions or embargoes from the United Nations that are directed towards KSA.

And if your argument is that rich people have the luxury of the laws bending down to them in Saudi Arabia, then I need to remind you that it happens everywhere including the United States (where Inter Miami is based). Look at Sam Bankman Fraud. Despite stealing $8 billion, he is chilling out at his home without facing any time in prison. If some ordinary guy had stolen $8 from a local Walmart in the US, he would have been behind the bars by now. 

Their performance in the last world cup football was amazing. One of them was finally successful while the other was criticized for drooping to the bench. People's passion for Ronaldo increased when Portugal lost the match. Portugal did not win the last World Cup but his fan followers did not decrease. When you get older, you don't have the same energy as before. But I think these two legends will try to give their best at the last stage of their football career.

Ronaldo and Messi have both been very influential players for their national teams.
Ronaldo, who is a Portuguese national player, is one of the mainstay players for the attack line and vice versa, Messi for Argentina is also a core player in the attack line.
But both of them had their heyday at almost the same time to become players who were really very competitive.
It's just that it happened in the past when both of them still had the stamina and performance to play well.

Now, due to the age factor, maybe the way of playing has changed drastically, only luck distinguishes it, where Ronaldo was trusted to be brought in by the Saudi team with a very large contract, while Messi is still the subject of discussion.

...

Whether your words have been wisely chosen and are well-considered will remain unanswered I suppose.

Messi won't ever regret his decision because he will be a billionaire with or without a contract in the SPL. But what you said about the laws and how they only apply to rich people could be the exact reason why Messi did not go there. Ronaldo took the money from people in a country where a lot of things go wrong and are dominated by injustice. But you call it a lost opportunity when someone decides against taking the money. Let's see if he decides to go there later, but someone saying no to Saudi bloody money isn't a mistake, it can also be a statement.

Don't worry too much about Messi's financial future. I am positive that he will be able to afford his bread and butter everyday.

If that is the real reason why Messi preferred MLS instead of the SPL, then I have to say that it is a big mistake. Look at Ronaldo. He is residing with his girlfriend in Saudi Arabia, despite the fact that unmarried couples are de jure not permitted in the kingdom. Saudi Arabia has relaxed a lot of their strict laws recently. For rich people, many of the laws are not applicable. I just hope that Messi will not regret about the lost opportunity. $1.2 billion offer was a once in a lifetime opportunity. Hopefully, he will rethink about it after a year in MLS.

I think Messi is superior to Ronaldo, but they are very close.

And the thing is that both should actually retire since they are way past their prime already, and they should give the opportunity to the next generation.

I mean, they both can simply appear on ads and they will make more money than actually playing

In fact, I think that both Messi and Ronaldo have the same technical level, the problem is that Ronaldo was going through a very bad phase at that moment with Manchester United for different reasons, not because he was actually playing badly.
Portugal's disqualification in the quarterfinals left Ronaldo with an even greater "weight" on his conscience.

I believe that Ronaldo has already recovered from this bad phase and if he plays in the next world cup... I hope he accepts it and that Portugal qualifies, I believe that we will still be able to see Cristiano Ronaldo in his full form and as one of the favorite players .

Yes, I really think that here the good combination of veteran players with younger ones is ideal, why? young players run a lot and have impressive speed, something that veteran players don't have unless you're CR7 or Messi who eventually are jets when they run, however when we see that in the news even right here on the forum they give it very Veteran players are tough because of their age, and yes, they may not have the same speed, but they are players who, if they leave the ball in an extreme situation, have the clarity to do the right thing, even over youngsters.

You are right, but what happens here is that when we talk about these two stars, they are the ones that give the most emotions in world football, until now I have not seen a player who has the same impetus as them, and apart from the same level that is from another world, for me both players did not give the required importance, they treated CR7 very badly, and Messi was not very good that the fans made that rudeness to him, and apart from that, the sheikh forced him to lose forgiveness, they are things that really people do not see, only the one who lives it is the one who knows, I think that for that reason they both went far away, to have more peace of mind doing what they like the most, I hope to see Messi and CR7 in the next world cup.

I don't agree with comparing these two players like that. Ronaldo left Manchester United because he had a poor performance there even in the first weeks in were playing on his team he got enough support but the Ronaldo we saw in the last months was not like the Rinaldo we saw in Real Madrid.
But Messi had a good performance in the last world cup and in PSG but he didn't get the support he had to get and that's why he left PSG for Inter Miami where can earn more money and he obviously could choose better teams but he put his family as first priority.
That's why I think even if we are going to see both players in the next world cup Messi can have much more chance there.

The truth is I do not think even they knew what they were going to do, according to the rumors Messi did indeed wanted to play at the Saudi Arabian league, but his wife simply did not agree with the decision to move there and that is why he is now at Miami, after all as we have discussed before the restrictions and laws on a country like Saudi Arabia could feel very restricting for some people and that is why Messi finally decided to play at Miami instead.

Barcelona FC was so keen in getting him but when Messi asked them, they cannot give a solid answer and was part of the reason why he did not return to Spain.
Anyway, here are some reasons that I found that might be reasonable enough on why Messi joined the Inter Miami FC and not Barcelona or Saudi Arabia.

1. Barcelona cannot afford it YET
A sensational return to Spain was reportedly Messi's preferred option, and the club was also keen on bringing him back.
However, although they have managed to get the green light from LALIGA to make a move for Messi, they still need to make sales to fund the operation.
The Qatar 2022 champion wanted his future sorted as soon as possible, and Barcelona were unable to provide guarantees.

2. American branding/business deal
Although he stands to earn nothing close to the reported wages offered by the Saudi club, the move to the MLS is lucrative and can be huge for Messi's brand.
According to the Athletic, Messi will reportedly receive a portion of the profits made by Adidas and Apple, two MLS-affiliated companies, for joining Inter Miami.  
He will also reportedly stand a chance to own a stake in the Miami-based club.

3. His family
Messi is evidently a family man, and they are involved in the decisions he makes.
According to reports, he did not see himself settling in Saudi Arabia with his family, hence the decision to choose Inter Miami.

Source: https://www.pulsesports.ng/football/story/3-reasons-why-messi-chose-inter-miami-over-barcelona-and-al-hilal-2023060717292795788

They don't have to play every game. As I already wrote, it is enough for them to enter the field a couple of times in the group stage, where, thanks to FIFA increasing the number of teams and thereby lowering the quality of the competition, we will know in advance which teams qualify from the group.
Messi said that he will not play in the World Cup 2026 but I remember him saying this already (I think even a couple of times) after another unsuccessful Copa America, but nevertheless he returned to the national team.

I absolutely agree and it also depends on what Messi wants. Nobody knows yet whether even he himself would agree to play another World Cup. But when he now stays fit and shows some great performances in the MLS, I expect the fans around the globe to be wanting to see Messi play the World Cup or at least be part of the Argentina team. He will also feel the pressure that people want him to be there because he is their idol in soccer.

But yes it is three years to go and nobody knows what is going to happen. It is also possible that in two years he goes to Saudi Arabia and it is the Saudi Arabians who want him to play another World Cup in order to draw more attention to the Saudi league as well. A lot of potential scenarios and in the end we will have to wait and see how it plays out.

When Cristiano Ronaldo was last at Manchester United and when the issue of his leaving the club came in front of everyone, no one thought for a single moment that Cristiano Ronaldo could go to Saudi Arabia but to everyone's surprise, he joined Al-Nassr Club in Saudi Arabia at the last moment.  
Same goes for Lionel Messi this season when he was out of power with PSG it was almost certain that he was without class but we all expected that Messi might not return to Barcelona or go to the Saudi League but at the last minute he joined Inter Miami in the United States. That is, apart from the club of these two, only they both knew about it and surprisingly they showed such a surprising act.