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Lionel Messi had an off year in 2014. He lost in the World Cup Final. He didn’t win the Ballon d’Or. His club, Barcelona, lost out on all three major trophies, including missing out on a chance to win La Liga on the very last match day of the year. By the end of the year it was looking like Barcelona, as great as they would always be, were a long way away from hitting the heights of their glorious past, and that Messi would never be able to regain the form that earned him 4 straight Ballon d’Ors.

How much have things changed. 

Matchday 6 has come to a close in UEFA’s European Qualifiers with only four more games left for each country. After the first week kicked-off in the later half of 2014, the 53 nations split into nine groups have developed distinct leaders who will enter into the play-off stages. As of now, the leaders of each group are: Iceland, Wales, Slovakia, Poland, England, Romania, Austria, Croatia, and Portugal. 

Clint Dempsey made a bad night worse for the Seattle Sounders Tuesday. The Sounders finished their US Open Cup match against the Portland Timbers with seven players thanks to an injury after they had used up all their subs, and three red cards. The last, and funniest, of these was given to Dempsey, who, while protesting a red card to a different Sounders player, took the referee's notebook and ripped it up. Although the ref was totally justified in red-carding Dempsey (who now might face a suspension for the incident, which is stupid), points for originality here for Clint.

It’s very, very rare that Messi is surprised by something on the pitch.

So you can imagine how I reacted to seeing him bring his hands up to his face in disbelief after having his shot saved. The fact that someone stopped his shot in the first place would have been surprising enough, but when I realized that that “someone” was actually a “something,” I was just as overcome as he was.

I have no idea what the machine is called, and I have no idea what I would name it. Messi Stopper 3000 sounds cheesy; Keeperly is too cliche.

Vuoso shocked everyone with his late goal against Chile on Monday. The Argentine-born, naturalized Mexican put in a performance that showed hard work occasionally rumps talent. A match that showed El Tri have come far in the Copa America. In what could be their last chapter of their Copa America campaign, they face a beaten rival that has nothing to lose.

Real Madrid fans have a reputation for being spoiled, let’s just get that out of the way. If you are a Real Madrid fan and you consider yourself not to be spoiled, chances are you are either lying or oblivious, because a massive, massive part Real Madrid’s fan base is known to boo Gareth Bale, the man that did this and this for the club, just like it booed Karim Benzema before him.

Brendan Rodgers and Liverpool have had quite a rough season from start to finish, from Daniel Sturridge’s injury-filled season to barely finishing with a Europa League spot. It seems things couldn't get any worse for the Merseyside outfit, but they are.

Barcelona have won the treble with possibly the deadliest front three in the modern game, and there is simply no stopping them. As Messi, Suarez and Neymar (MSN) now fight against each other in the Copa America, Luis Enrique is busy behind his desk in Spain creating the next squad that can sustain the current reputation. Which, let's be honest, is as hot as the Hindenburg right before it exploded.

Here are some of the possible line-ups Luis Enrique could use to ensure back-to-back championships:

Option 1 – Play Messi Wide, Send In Pogba As Reinforcement

There has been a lot of talk over what will happen once Father Time takes his toll on Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo; who will take their place? Many are quick to throw out names such as Pogba, Hazard, and Neymar. These names are all certainly nothing else than the most talented young players on the planet, but they are no Messi or Ronaldo.