Lionel Messi is probably the best soccer player of all time, and one of the reasons for that is he never stops trying to improve himself. Even though he's a world-class passer, dribbler and finisher, Messi told a Russian outlet his goal now is to be a better penalty-taker.
"I want to be perfect and yet there are some parts of game I have to improve to reach the maximum level. Which part? Penalties, I have to practice them more."
Messi famously missed his penalty against Chile in the Copa America Centenario final shootout. He also missed against Chelsea in a Champions League semifinal in 2012.
According to Transfermarkt, Messi has taken 100 penalties in his career, scoring 78 and missing 22. His completion percentage (78 percent, for those of you who are even worse at math than me) is good but not world class. Cristiano Ronaldo, for example, has made 99 of 118. Mexican legend Cuauhtemoc Blanco missed just one penalty in his whole career. To reach that kind or rarified company, Messi will really have to practice.
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