Argentina hasn't won a major trophy since 1993, and it's been really the only knock on Lionel Messi in his career. Why can't he win the big one with his nation?
The superstar attacker has answered the question "Can he be as good with Argentina as he is with Barcelona?" That's evident by him becoming the team's all-time leading goal scorer this year and guiding the team to three straight finals -- the 2014 World Cup, and the 2015 and 2016 Copa Americas.
So when Messi got so frustrated with the pressure and the final losses that he retired from the national team after the Copa America final this summer, we all had to begin to view the future of Argentina without him. Luckily for the fans of the two-time World Cup winners, Messi never missed a game due to retirement and returned under the leadership of new coach Edgardo Bauza. And good thing he did, because had he not, Argentina might have been a good bet to miss the 2018 World Cup.
Even with Messi coming back from "retirement," we have gotten a good look at what Messi-less Argentina looks like, and it's not pretty.
Messi has missed time during this qualifying cycle due to injuries, the most recent a groin injury that has resulted in him missing three of the last four games, including Thursday's 2-2 draw at Peru. Overall, Messi has missed six of nine matches, and the stats do really tell the story. Take a look.
| WITH MESSI | WITHOUT MESSI | |
| Games | 3 | 6 |
| Wins | 3 | 1 |
| Draws | 0 | 4 |
| Losses | 0 | 1 |
| Winning pct. | 100 percent | 39 percent |
The matches without Messi include a poor 2-0 loss at home to Ecuador in October 2015 and draws against bottom-feeders Peru and Venezuela.
So without Messi, and with that rate of efficiency for all of qualifying, Argentina would be on pace to finish with 21 total points from 18 matches -- a number of points that has never, ever been enough to get a team through to the World Cup.
Back in the summer, I said Argentina was mediocre without Messi. And I wasn't kidding. These stats show that, and so did that lackluster showing at Peru on 2-2 draw.
Sure Argentina is loaded in attack, but you have Sergio Aguero who isn't half of what he is for Manchester City as he is with his nation, Gonzalo Higuain whose reputation has become stinking in the biggest of games and strange, and out-of-place call-ups like Lucas Alario and Lucas Pratto.
It isn't a coincidence that Argentina has gotten nine points from the games Messi has played and just seven points in double the amount of games which he has missed.
Argentina with Messi is one of the most efficient national teams in the world and always a top contender. Without him, it's not a top five team in South America.
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