Player No.1: Lionel Messi

The World Cup has exploded with all its charm, character, spirit and vivacity ? qualities which make it such a special occasion to savour. As the first fortnight of the competition came to an end, with 16 teams being eliminated after a gruelling group stage battle, the memories of week No. 2 has been about ecstasy and agony in equal measure.

We saw some good and competitive matches during those seven days. Some of them entertained us with modern technical and tactical understanding ? necessary components of a team game ? like the Argentines, Spanairds, Ghanaians and Germans.

Some like Brazil, England, France and Portugal entertained us with their individual skills. But till the end of Round I, the so-called big stars like Beckham, Zidane, Ronaldihno or Ballack, did not live up to expectations.

This has made me comb through the bunch of promising youngsters to pick the star of the week. The preceding week has given me a number of choices, who are not only talented but stars in the making. Rooney is already enjoying star status at club-level football, but he is yet to fire on all cylinders in Germany because of his injury.

Also making a beeline for stardom are Riquelme, Lionel Messi, Xabi Alonso, Xavi, Fernando Torres, Tevez, Crespo, Cristiano Ronaldo, Deco, Pauleta, Luca Toni, Kaka, Robinho and Juninho, just to name a few. I must say these youngsters have outclassed and outshone the veterans in the second week of the tournament. Because of them, no big team suffered any upset in the group stage.

Picking the best out of this bunch is a difficult job. But eventually, my vote will go in favour of Messi, who turned 19 on Saturday. How can I swim against the stream when the legendary Pele and Maradona have spoken highly about this Argentine teenager?

I like his speed with and without the ball. His passing resembles that of Pele, and his jinking run with the ball reminds me of Maradona. He still has a long way to go, but if he can cope with the pressure and dedicate himself solely to the game, I’m sure the fans can expect to get another Maradona.

Messi came on as a second-half substitute in the game against Serbia & Montenegro, and immediately attracted attention. He came through as a gamemaker, with some delicate touches, and also scored one himself.

Against the Dutch, Pekerman played him from the word go and didn’t he make his presence felt! His explosive presence tested the Dutch defence, even though the match ended goalless.

Messi served notice to the world when he joined Barcelona as a 13-year-old. He moved up the ranks scoring regularly and is now a feared man in the Primera Liga.

He also helped Argentina win the 2005 Fifa World Youth Championship. He scored half-a-dozen goals to finish top-scorer. Surely, the senior Argentine side will benefit from many such outings in the months and days, months and years to come.