“Football is an art, like dancing is an art - but only when it's well done does it become an art,” said Arsene Wenger, the legendary former Arsenal manager.
Lionel Messi has all the data to prove himself as one of the greatest footballers the world has ever seen, but stats and trophies don't always speak of the aesthetic prospects of one's performance.
If the game of football is considered art or a form of art, one has to take a deeper look and then, the number of goals or the scoring chances one created for the teammates doesn't matter much.
Here, however, the way a goal is scored or an assist is provided might be important, and what also matters is how a player acts on the pitch with movements, touches and ball controls.
The activities between two or more players in terms of exchange of passes among each other and moving forward could also be in contention.
In his illustrious career, Messi has done almost everything what Wenger was suggesting about getting it well done, and often on occasions he seemed to be dancing with the ball.
There might still be an argument if those could be considered art, but what Messi has been doing over the decades is absolute beauty, and most football followers would agree.
One of the differences between an artist and a footballer is that an artist may get better as he or she gets older, but for a footballer there is the age factor because of the game's physical attributes.
The age of 35 is usually termed the ending times of a footballer's career, but Messi is just carrying on his brilliance in the ongoing World Cup with the mastery he achieved in his life to exhibit a likeness of art in Qatar as well.
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He has already scored five goals, including three penalties and a world-class strike against Mexico.
But the two assists out of three he provided have garnered more praises.
One of them came against Croatia in the crucial semi-final.
From near the halfway line, Messi swiftly ran forward, slowed down a bit near the penalty area, then stopped at the edge, before twisting and turning to nip in behind, and finally feeding a cutback for Julian Alvarez to score.
One of the best defenders of the tournament, Josko Gvardiol was close to his body all the way to stop him but Messi was in his own zone and was nigh on unstoppable.
Alvarez was like a puppet in a string when he converted the magnificent effort of his master into a goal with a tap-in.
The Argentine legend has scored over 750 goals in more than a thousand games in his career for clubs and country.
Many of them came through some spectacular movements, outstanding finishes and stunning dribbling skills as well.
“There might be a debate whether football is art or not but when the ball is in Messi's possession, it becomes art,” artist and poet Tokon Thaakoor, who studied oriental art at the faculty of fine art of University of Dhaka, told Dhaka Tribune.
“Messi is not only a player; he is also an artist, the best in the 21st century. There are both magic and art in his legs. He has given so much to this world we have not seen before.”
