Luka Jovic: Lionel Messi's young and unknown rival
When we compare someone with an extraterrestrial being like Lionel Messi, we use names of all time greats like Diego Maradona, Pele, Cristiano Ronaldo and so on. But things are not the same this season, as a young and unlikely candidate is doing his best, and has emerged as a rival of Lionel Messi for the Golden Boot this season.
Luka Jovic is the top scorer of the Bundesliga alongside Paco Alcacer, with both tied at 12 goals this season. Luka has also managed to provide 3 assists in the 917 minutes he has played in the Bundesliga. Moreover, he has managed to have a sensational impact with Eintracht Frankfurt in the Europa League with 5 goals in just 3 appearances.
Undoubtedly, Luka Jovic's best moment this season came against Fortuna Dusseldorf, where he single-handedly scored five goals in a single match to become the youngest player ever to do so.
"If Luka carries on like this he will be a world class player, he's one of the best in Europe at his age, he can score with his right, his left, his head, he's complete," said former Frankfurt boss and current Bayern Munich manager, Niko Kovac when he was asked about Luka Jovic.
On the other hand, Lionel Messi remains at his usual mercurial best, racking up immense numbers in front of goal. He has proved to be a cut above the rest with his terrific start to the season. He has already scored 14 goals in just 13 appearances in LaLiga and 6 in the UEFA Champions League so far.
Messi has been at his brilliant best this season
What's truly astonishing is that even without the alien-like goal-scoring statistics, Leo Messi has managed to provide 10 assists in LaLiga for FC Barcelona. There is no doubt about the inhumane impact of Messi with FC Barcelona.
But the fact that the young Luka Jovic has managed to go neck to neck with the legendary Leo Messi so far deserves huge credit. Jovic was blackmailed and threatened to get his legs broken when he was just 17 and since then, his rise to the top has been an inspirational story.
He has proved himself to be an integral part of Eintracht Frankfurt and his sensational rise is gaining huge attraction and acclaim across Europe. Only three teams- Paris Saint Germain, Barcelona and Dortmund has scored more goals than Frankfurt this season, which shows the dominance and efficiency of Jovic in front of goal.
Amid reports of wide interest from top European clubs, he still has a lot to learn. It remains to be seen whether Luka Jovic can maintain his red hot form. But the boy who was on verge of losing his legs, has come a long way from the villages of Serbia to announce his presence to the whole world, and become the top scorer of the Bundesliga at just 20.