Lionel Messi's Early-Season Club Form Sign of Argentine's Enduring Quality

Lionel Messi missed a penalty as Argentina were beaten 2-0 by Brazil on Saturday in Beijing and the Barcelona superstar was most certainly not at his best during the match.

Indeed, the World Cup's beaten finalists were only 1-0 down when Angel Di Maria was fouled in the penalty area to win the spot-kick and, had Messi sent it home, it would have changed the game, but it was a poor effort, per BBC Sport:

However, Messi's performance for his national team in Saturday's friendly was not indicative of his general form for his club since the start of the season, despite many expecting him to kick off the new term fatigued.

He effectively carried Argentina to the World Cup final, per Super Sport, but did not have enough in him to take them all the way as they lost 1-0 to Germany in extra time:

In the run-up to that match, Messi's father Jorge told Brazilian newspaper Folha de S.Paulo (h/t The Telegraph's Gregory Walton) that his son was exhausted:

"Leo (Messi) said it looked like his legs weighed 100 kilos. He was very tired."

Despite this tiredness and the pressures of expectation from an entire nation—as well as criticism he received at the back end of last season for perceived poor club performances per Pete Jenson in the Daily Mail—he has started the new La Liga season in irresistible form.

Kin Cheung/Associated Press

Lesser players would have eased their way into the new season having endured such a tiring summer but it is a sign of Messi's enduring quality that he has been able to hit such heights so soon after the World Cup.

Indeed, many of the triumphant German team have seemingly suffered as a result of a long World Cup campaign, Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger specifically citing it as a reason for Mesut Ozil's drop in form, via football commentator Deji Ferami:

Messi, on the other hand, has been brilliant so far in 2014-15, scoring six La Liga goals and providing six assists in seven matches per WhoScored.com.

Also via WhoScored, Messi has been the most effective creator throughout La Liga this season so far:

Even when not at his best against Brazil he still contributed half of Gerardo Martino's side's shots on goal, per Opta:

The 27-year-old's early-season stats make for fine reading for Barcelona fans and show that, far from his form declining, he is as good as ever and his quality is likely to endure for some time yet.

Messi's Barcelona ended last term without a major trophy win—a rarity for the Argentine in his Camp Nou career—but, under new manager Luis Enrique, they already look in fine form as they sit atop the La Liga table having dropped just two points and yet to concede a goal.

Messi is undeniably at the heart of the team, running the attacks from his No. 10 role, and his superlative initial form has been reflected in that of his fellow Barca players.

His goals are of the highest quality—just look at his most recent effort against Rayo Vallecano per Unibet—and his ability to create chances is unmatched:

The greatest players step up when the pressure is on. After a trophyless season last term and the criticism Messi received added to the heartbreak of losing a World Cup final, he has responded to the pressure as the very best do.

Messi could retire now and still go down as arguably the greatest footballer of all time. However, he is showing in the new term that what sets him apart is consistency and enduring quality, and with him in this kind of form, Barca must again be considered the European team to beat this season.