Lionel Messi Missing From Top 50 Dribbler List With Premier League Stars Coming Out On Top
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Lionel Messi has gotten off to a modest start to life in Paris, but it turns out that even the Argentine's trademark dribbles haven't been as frequent or as successful this season as you might otherwise expect.
New data, in fact, places Messi outside of the top 50 dribblers in the world, which perhaps highlights how the 34-year-old has adapted his game in recent years.
With just three goals in eight games for PSG this season, and none in Ligue 1, it's fair to say that he hasn't set the world alight in the French capital just yet.
The most intriguing PSG-related stat of all is that Messi hasn't even registered an assist so far for his new club.
To add insult to injury, according to metrics presented by the CIES Football Observatory, the former Barca star hasn't even been amongst the 50 best dribblers this season.
CIES recently released a comprehensive ranking, which shows the number of completed dribbles by an individual player per 100 minutes of play.
To the dismay of many, Messi doesn't even break the top 50 - despite arguably being the greatest dribbler of a ball in the sport's history.
Other players who did crack the top 50 include PSG teammates Kylian Mbappe (10th) and Neymar (5th), as well as Real Madrid's Vinicius Junior (11th) and Bayern starlet Leroy Sane (24th).
Further down the order, we also see a number of wonderkids making their mark, with Borussia Dortmund and England midfielder Jude Bellingham coming in at 36th, posting an average of 3.79 dribbles completed per 100 mins.
The top 10 is as follows:
9. Nahitan Nandez (Cagliari) - 5.36
8. Sofiane Boufal (Angers) - 5.52
7. Jeremie Boga (Sassuolo) - 5.80
6. Alphonso Davies (Bayern Munich) - 6.14
5. Neymar (PSG) - 6.28
4. Kamaldeen Sulemana (Stade Rennais) - 6.44
3. Allan Saint-Maximin (Newcastle United) - 7.02
2. Rafael Leao (AC Milan) - 7.10
1. Adama Traore (Wolves) - 11.24
As you can see, there is a clear and definitive number one. Wolverhampton Wanderers winger Adama Traore is 1st with a frankly ridiculous 11.24 dribbles per 100 minutes, four more than second-placed Rafael Leao of AC Milan.
The 25-year-old speed merchant has enjoyed a welcome return to form over the past few months, after previously attracting interest from Spurs during the summer break.
However, Traore wasn't the only Premier League winger to appear inside the top five.
Rather unsurprisingly, he was joined by Newcastle United's Allan Saint-Maximin, whose dazzling runs have been entertaining the St James' Park crowd ever since he arrived at the club in 2019.
Ranked third, with 7.02 dribbles per 100, his enduring importance to The Magpies cannot be overstated.
