Messi is old, short and slow. How is he still dominating at the World Cup?

OpinionOpinion byGert-Jan PeppingOther·3 Jul, 2026 05:00 PM5 mins to readProfessor of Human Movement Sciences, Australian Catholic UniversityLionel Messi: How can someone with so little of what we might call athleticism (relative to his peers, at least) still be the best player on the pitch? Photo / Getty ImagesLionel Messi is 39 years old. He is 1.70 metres tall –shorter than almost every defender he plays against. He was never astoundingly quick, and he is slower now.

And yet, watching this World Cup, you would be hard-pressed to name a player doing more damage: he has scored the