10 Players to Watch at the 2018 World Cup

Group D: Lionel Messi

Country: Argentina

Club Team: Barcelona

Age: 30

In many ways, the importance of this World Cup to Lionel Messi is the same as it is to Cristiano Ronaldo, and in a lot of ways, it is worth so much more to Messi.

Coming off the agony of an extra-time defeat to Germany in the final of the 2014 World Cup, Messi has been as close as you can possibly get to glory without grasping it. Outside of the international stage, Messi has accomplished everything, and he has already secured himself a place in the pantheon of soccer for the rest of time.

However, the World Cup has always eluded him, and at the age of 30, this is probably his last chance to go for the glory while he's in his prime. His home country of Argentina grows increasingly restless to enjoy the success he has brought to Barcelona fans for over a decade.

Messi's relationship with Argentina has always been a stressful one. On the international stage, he has lived under the shadow of Diego Maradona and has carried the full weight of his country's expectations directly on his shoulders. Despite the immense talent around him, Messi has always had to answer for Argentina's shortcomings, and the duty he feels towards his country has taken its toll. Former Argentinian World Cup winner Jorge Valdano summed it up perfectly by saying, "Messi plays finals for Argentina not to win, but for forgiveness."

This summer, in Russia, Messi has a chance to finally receive that forgiveness and provide his home country with the trophy of their dreams.

To do that, Argentina will have to navigate a tough road. While our metrics give them the ninth-best odds (80.34%) of making the Round of 16, things only get worse from there. They have the 12th-best odds of reaching the semifinals -- at 12.01% -- and only a 0.49% chance of becoming champions. Remember: even though this team has some serious star power, especially in attack, it took a Messi hat trick in the final round of qualification for Argentina to just make it to Russia.

However, the low odds mean little to Messi, who has defied the odds his entire life. For all he's had to overcome, the odds of becoming one of the greatest to ever play the game were much longer.

What to Expect: