Nobody can really stop Lionel Messi. You can just try to contain him for a while. But Messi will eventually break through your defense.
Still teams try, and that’s just what Benfica did when they played Barcelona in the Champions League – as they surrounded him on defense, with nearly all ten field players ready at any moment to step in and stop Messi. Especially as Messi got closer to the goal the mob of Benfica players converged on him.
In the end Messi didn’t get his goal, but that’s only because he ended up hurting his knee. Take a look at all ten Benfica field players trying to stop Messi.
New: But this crowding around Messi actually happens all the time. Chile tried to do the same thing to Messi in the Copa America final, as all nine field players surrounded Messi. Chile was playing with ten men after a red card and every field player had their eye on Messi.