Lionel Messi on cusp of greatness as double sees him shine
Emulating national hero Maradona starting to look a real possibility as Barca striker's goals spur team onwards despite patchy defending
Lionel Messi's double for Argentina in their 3-2 victory over Nigeria suggests the four-time World Player of the Year may be ready to take his place among the all-time greats of the game.
The 27-year-old has amassed a glittering haul of trophies with Barcelona, netting 354 goals in 425 official games for the La Liga club and helping them win three Champions League crowns.
Until the finals in Brazil, however, he had yet to shine on soccer's biggest stage, following subdued performances in his previous two tournaments.
There are good calibre players in the Argentina team but Messi is from Jupiter
Messi's patchy World Cup form called into question whether he would ever quite claim his spot in a pantheon that includes the likes of compatriot Diego Maradona, Brazil's Pele and Johan Cruyff of the Netherlands.
The comparison with Maradona, whose brilliance almost single-handedly propelled Argentina to victory in Mexico in 1986, is the one inevitably made most often.
Both men are short in stature, predominantly left-footed and blessed with incredible skills that can unlock the most stubborn defences.
Maradona emerged from the 1986 World Cup as a hero in Argentina, but a villain in the eyes of many spectators after his infamous "hand of god" effort against England in the quarter-finals, when he also scored what is regarded as one of the greatest goals in soccer history to secure a 2-1 success.