Manning and Messi - Two Football Greats
Two big names in football (or fútbol) had quite the weekend - Peyton Manning was inducted into the Professional Football Hall of Fame and Lionel Messi is leaving FC Barcelona.
The widely loved Peyton Manning had his Professional Football Hall of Fame enshrinement on Sunday and it can only be described as wholesome. Manning is often considered one of the greatest quarterbacks to grace the NFL, having spent his first 14 seasons with the Indianapolis Colts and his last 4 with the Denver Broncos. Among his many accolades, Manning won two Super Bowls, one with the Colts in 2007 (where he was also named the Super Bowl MVP) and one with the Broncos in 2016.
And as if we didn’t love Manning enough for being one of the best quarterbacks, we can now all love him for his great HOF speech. After starting off with some jests towards former rivals Ray Lewis and Tom Brady, Manning gave honor to many greats, to include his father Archie Manning as well as the rest of his family. Manning then took the remainder of his speech to thank all who contributed to his career and acknowledge the importance of nurturing the future of football.
“A legacy is only worthwhile when there is a future to fuel”
Image Source: Peyton Manning at Hall of Fame Speech
Another big event from this weekend was Lionel Messi leaving FC Barcelona, the only club he’s ever played for. After 17 seasons with Barca, Messi is set to join Paris-Saint Germain FC due to Barca’s inability to comply with La Liga financial regulations. Some may recall Messi wanting to leave the club last year due to disagreements with management however, he remained after refusing to take the club to court once they acknowledged Messi wouldn’t be let out of his contract.
Despite his desire to leave the club last year Messi was outwardly emotional at his press conference - frequently needing to wipe tears away. Messi did tell fans that he plans on continuing to win and play great soccer even if it’s not at Barca - and also left Barcelona fans with hopeful comments about the future saying he will be “[returning] in some way because [Barcelona] is [his family’s] home”. Regardless of where Messi is playing, as one of soccer’s greats, he will continue to have loyal and supportive fans across the globe.
Image Source: Messi Leaving Barca - Press Conference