Why does Messi needs to win a major tournament in order to be compared to Pele and Maradona?

[bdbdbd]

Neodegenerate said:

Ka-pi96 said:

But why only international tournaments then? Messi's club competition record beats both Pele/Maradona.

The biggest and baddest prize of them all?  No one is calling a former XFL or USFL player the best American football player of all time.  Either that or stubborn people who refuse to believe anyone can surpass their heroes.  Hell, he can win the current tourney and there will still be people complaining that he has yet to win a World Cup so it doesn't count until he does.

RolStoppable said:

Plus the obvious catch that for an NFL player the only big title to win is the NFL itself. Real football is more complex.

I wouldn't say soccerfootball is more complex from a title perspective.  World Cup is your biggest and baddest.  That's the ultimate prize right there.  Harder and more noteworthy?  Absolutely.  More complex?  Not for a commonplace fan looking for someone to win on the grandest stage of them all.

 

World cup have traditionally been biggest and baddest only for non-European teams, as the European Championships have been much harder to qualify in the first place - which is why some people value EC higher. Granted, it's debatable if the one or two American top teams make up for the rest.