LIONEL MESSI

INTRODUCTION
Lionel Andres Messi is an Argentinian professional soccer player. He plays for the top Spanish soccer team FC Barcelona. His debutant game was in October 2004 at the age of 17. His been playing for over 13 years with FCB and the Argentinian National Team. He was born on the 24th of June 1987 and is now 28 years old. His shirt number is 10. Messi is considered as one of the best soccer players by all.

ACHEIVEMENTS

• FCB's all-time top scorer
• Youngest to score 200+ goals
• First player o score 5 goals in 1 match in UEFA
• Won 8 La Liga's
• 4 Copa Del Ray's
• 5 Supercopa de Espana
• 4 Champions League
• 2 World Cups
• 4 Super Cups
• Olympic Gold Medalist
• Over 500 professional goals

ACHEIVEMENTS

• FIFA Ballon d'Or (2009,2011,2012,2013,2015)
• World Soccer Player of the Year (2009,2011,2012)
• World Soccer Young Player of the year (2006,2007,2008)
• Onze d'Or (2009,2011,2012)
• ESPY International Player of the Year (2012)
• La Liga Player of the Year (2009,2010,2011)
• European Golden Shoe (2010,2011,2012)
• El Pais King of European Soccer (2009-2012)
• Goal.com Player of the Year (2009, 2010, 2011.2015)
• TOO MANY TO LIST😩

FITNESS COMPONENTS

• Soccer is a very difficult sport as it requires technique, skill and a whole lot of fitness components such as...
• Speed, Agility, Balance, Coordination, Reaction Time, Aerobic Capacity Muscular Strength, Muscular Power and Flexibility

SPEED
Where a performer moves (whole body/body part) as quick as possible from point A to B.
ATHLETE PERFORMANCE
In soccer speed is key as you need to be quick with the ball to get past the defenders and run across the pitch in a short amount of time. When Messi was 10 years old he was diagnosed with a hormone growth deficiency which severely stopped his height growth. But as a result he his smaller than most other players which makes him quicker.

SPEED TRAINING
Circut training, Plyometrics, Fartlek Training, Interval Traing and of course Speed training.
PHYSIOLOGICAL CHANGES
When you train speed you can either get stronger and more muscular legs or get smaller thighs and have skinnier legs. You also as an over all get faster and speeder throughout your whole body movements.

AGILITY
The ability to change direction quickly without losing balance
ATHLETE PERFORMANCE
Agility is another important skill to have when playing soccer as you need to be able to quickly change direction with the ball to avoid defenders to getting to the ball. Agility is key so you don't lose your balance and fall or let go of the ball.

AGILITY TRAINING
Interval Training, Fartlek Training, Plyometrics and Circut Training.
PHYSIOLOGICAL CHANGES
If you train to have good Agility your legs and feet will be more accelerated and your movements would be faster and stronger at the same time.

COORDINATION
The ability to use the body’s senses to execute motor skills smoothly and accurately.
ATHLETE PERFORMANCE
While playing soccer there are so many moves you need to perform in order to score, pass, dribble etc. Your body needs to be good at Coordination to successfully complete these actions. If a defender comes up to you, you need to quickly think of a way to get pass them. If your teammate passes to you and you see a clear shot, you need to know how strong and where to aim for the shot.

COORDINATION TRAINING
Circut Training
PHYSIOLOGICAL CHANGES
Like Agility, some changes that occur when training your Coordination are your body movements getting faster. Another one is that your mind and mental thoughts of the sport will be faster. As you play more and more, you learn whether a decision is a good idea or not. You will improve every time even if it doesn't turn out right.

AEROBIC CAPACITY
Also known as Cardiovascular fitness is the ability to take in, deliver and use oxygen at the working muscles to sustain exercise.
ATHLETE PERFORMANCE
A full match of soccer goes for 90mins with 2 halves. In this period of time your running, jumping, shooting and much more. You need to be able to keep playing your best during the whole time. That is Aerobic Capacity.

AEROBIC CAPACITY TRAINING
Fartlek training, Interval training, continuos training and Circut training.
PHYSIOLOGICAL CHANGES
When you train your Aerobic Capacity, your body is able to run long distance very well which makes your legs more durable and muscular. You also get well and fast working lungs to inhale and exhale air to keep you going.

MUSCULAR STRENGTH
The muscle’s ability to generate force against an object in a single contraction.
ATHLETE PERFORMANCE
When playing soccer the aim of the game is to score the most goals in 90mins. To score a goal you need to shoot a ball with your feet into a big net. To shoot you need to aim and kick with the needed amount of power to get it into the net. You need excellent muscular strength to complete this. As its in a single contractions and requires strength.

MUSCULAR STRENGTH TRAINING
Resistance training and Circut training.
PHYSIOLOGICAL CHANGES
With Muscular Power your body will be stronger and in soccer mainly your legs as that's the way you shoot a goal.

Soccer is a worldwide sport played and loved by many. It requires a lot of skill and hard work. Lionel Messi is just another example of how amazing soccer is and how much talent is used in the game. He is a role model to many and especially the greatest soccer player ever!
By Fatima Mohebbi❤️⚽️

BIBLIOGRAPHY

• http://www.biographyonline.net/sport/football/lionel-messi.html
• https://sites.google.com/site/lionelmessi10barcasoccer/accomplishments
• http://www.topendsports.com/sport/soccer/fitness-components.htm
• http://www.goal.com/en/news/1785/ballon-dor