He has sparked plenty of magic and mayhem during his career but recently Lionel Messi has been more wrapped up in contracts than con tricks.
Yet, despite all the Machiavellian negotiations that have surrounded the Argentine icon’s long goodbye from Barcelona, as the prelude to joining PSG, this steely individual remains one of the most charismatic performers the game has ever produced – and many of his most memorable exploits were produced on trips to Scotland.
He has always hit the headlines, whether as a player, feinting, jinking and shimmying his way through various petrified defences at Tannadice, Murrayfield and Celtic Park, or as one of a group of lustrous football A-listers who trained in St Andrews, or even as a fan who watched Diego Maradona manage Argentina to a 1-0 victory with a goal from Maxi Rodriguez in a friendly match at Hampden Park in 2008.
Contractural complications – a recurring theme in Messi’s life – prevented him from being part of his country’s squad but he was among the 32,000 supporters in Glasgow and said later: “You always want to follow Diego and cheer him on. He is a hero.”
The same description could be applied to the little maestro who might be in the twilight of his career at 34 but is determined not to bid adieu to European football without earning a first-ever Champions League title for his new paymasters in Paris.
Messi was just 21 when he bewitched, bothered and bewildered Dundee United during a second-half display in 2008 that left even the home fans feeling euphoric.
The prolific striker may have been accustomed to receiving adulation at the Nou Camp, but there were purrs throughout Tannadice as he unveiled his bag of tricks.
Obviously, he was still a raw talent but he already possessed the aura of a superstar in the making and boasted the quality that distinguishes the truly great from the very good: an apparently endless amount of time on the ball.
He was given the captain’s armband when he entered the proceedings and although it was the first time he had ever led the famous Barca line-up, he was in his element, patently revelling in the expansive management style of Pep Guardiola, who has been another of his most important influences.
For the second year running, the Catalan club had used United’s St Andrews University training base for the first week of their pre-season build-up and that meant fans were treated to a second summer friendly in a row against the Spanish giants.
A 48-strong contingent from the Catalan club – including players, coaching staff and physiotherapy and medical staff – had touched down at Dundee Airport and were taken to the Old Course Hotel.
Fans congregated along St Leonard’s Road to catch a glimpse of Messi, Thierry Henry and Samuel Eto’o as they trained with their team-mates at playing fields that have subsequently been graced by other leading clubs, including Manchester United.
The second summer friendly attracted a sizeable attendance and the contest was shown live on TV in Barcelona’s homeland and across Europe.
“You wouldn’t normally catch me smiling after a 5-1 defeat.”
Dundee United boss Craig Levein
The hosts shocked their opponents by taking the lead after 25 minutes when Prince Buaben headed the ball past Victor Valdes.
But that act of impertinence was the catalyst for a volcanic response from Barcelona, who equalised just 26 seconds later when a Dani Alves cross found Henry, who saw his first attempt blocked by Lukasz Zaluska before converting the rebound with a low drive.
Barcelona made eight changes at the interval including Gerard Pique, Sergio Busquets and Yaya Toure, but Eto’o and Messi were the most significant introductions and the latter turned the match on its head with a 23-minute hat-trick.
First, he started and finished a move involving Eto’o when he left the United defence flailing in his wake and sent a delightful angled drive home.
Then, after Eto’o had added to the scoreline, Messi put Barcelona 4-1 up on 76 minutes with a moment of brilliance.
He completed his hat-trick when he was on hand to pounce on a rebound after McGovern had thwarted a close-range effort from Eto’o.
Craig Levein isn’t in any danger of being confused with Mr Micawber in the positivity stakes.
And there have been plenty of occasions where the former internationalist has lived up to PG Wodehouse’s famous assertion: “It is never difficult to distinguish between a Scotsman with a grievance and a ray of sunshine.”
Yet even he was thrilled by the mesmerising quality he had witnessed from Messi who, at times, looked as if he was playing a different game from anybody else.
Levein said: “You wouldn’t normally catch me smiling after a 5-1 defeat. However, that match against Barcelona was a worthwhile experience for players and fans alike.
“They have just witnessed playing against and seeing some of the best players in the world. So it was no disgrace to lose so heavily.
“We would have had to be world record holders at 1,500 metres to keep up with Barca.
“Hard though we worked and chased, the fact is we just couldn’t get near them. There was just no way we could keep up our energy to stay with them for 90 minutes.
“Barcelona were fitter and faster this time. But, despite the result, I thoroughly enjoyed the game. It was a fantastic fixture for us at this stage of our preparation.
“Obviously Messi was the one who made the difference. He was fantastic to watch.”
The best and the hardest to stop
In the aftermath of that frenetic encounter, Dundee United skipper Lee Wilkie admitted that Messi was the best player with whom he had ever locked horns.
He said: “He is one of the very few players in the world who can play like this. With his composure and confidence, he is the total package.
“Messi is a level above even his own team-mates and that is really saying something when you consider how many great players Barcelona have in their ranks.
“They are undoubtedly one of the best teams in the world.”
Hibs fared even worse against the wee man
He only played for half the contest – and yet was still voted Man of the Match.
And, no matter that the game was being held at Murrayfield, Messi was in sublime form when Barcelona thrashed Mixu Paatelainen’s Hibernian 6-0 in July 2008 with a mesmerising performance at the home of Scottish rugby.
Within the first 26 minutes, the hosts trailed 4-0, with Messi scoring one and orchestrating a brace of other goals for a grateful Eidur Gudjohnsen.
Not finished, he then set up Pedro Rodriguez to sweep a fourth past a bemused Andy McNeil and, at that stage, the home supporters began to wince.
Every time he advanced, Messi created chances and often left his rivals clutching at shadows. In this case, 45 minutes was more than enough.
He has not always been on the winning side
Messi has amassed so many prizes and plaudits, medals and memorabilia throughout the last 15 years that he would need his own trophy cabinet to accommodate them.
But, like all the other greats in the pantheon, he hasn’t always tasted success and was on the wrong side of a 2-1 defeat to Celtic at Parkhead in 2012 in the Champions League.
The Scots took the lead when Victor Wanyama rose majestically to head past Victor Valdes from a corner and although Barcelona pressed for an equaliser – and Messi came close to equalising as the pressure mounted in the closing stages – teenager Tony Watt came off the bench to give Celtic a cushion in the last 10 minutes.
Messi, who was regularly thwarted by Fraser Forster, eventually grabbed a goal in injury time, but Celtic held their nerve to inflict Barca’s first defeat of the season.
Revenge is a dish best served goalled
If that reverse proved the Catalans were fallible, there was no denying the ferocity of their retaliation when Messi & Co met the Scots again in the tournament in 2016.
This was a night where anything that could go wrong for the Glasgow club did go wrong: one where Messi scored his sixth Champions League hat-trick and a rampant Barcelona inflicted on Celtic their heaviest-ever European defeat.
The forward cracked in an early first goal in the Group C match and, after Moussa Dembele had a penalty saved, he added his second as the floodgates opened.
In the second half, Neymar’s free-kick sailed into the net, Andres Iniesta superbly volleyed a fourth, Messi slid home the fifth and Luis Suarez scored with a volley and then a side-footed finish to complete the rout.
It was another fine Messi demonstration of his prowess not just in finding the net, but supplying those around him with exquisite service.
Fergie has his say on Messi’s qualities
Sir Alex Ferguson is as effusive as everybody else about the Argentine star’s ceaseless ability to unlock and unnerve even the sternest of defences.
The former Aberdeen manager presided over an unprecedented period of success at the helm of Manchester United.
During his 27-year tenure, Ferguson won more major trophies than any other manager in the history of football.
But while the Red Devils lifted a brace of Champions League trophies, in 1999 and 2008, Barcelona proved their nemesis in the 2009 and 2011 finals.
And, of course, one of the biggest reasons for that was the masterful Messi.
Ferguson said: “Lionel Messi could play in the 1950s and the present day, as could Di Stefano, Pele, Maradona, Cruyff because they are all great players.
“Lionel Messi without question comes into that category.
“The Messi I saw 10 years ago (in 2009) was on the verge of being the best, the Messi I saw today (in 2019) is already the greatest ever.”
He was speaking after the striker’s brilliance had helped Barcelona beat Manchester United 3-0 in the Nou Camp in the quarter-finals of the Champions League.
It was another reminder that Messi is on a different planet to most players.
