AS: Messi doesn't have the record, Zambias' Godfrey Chitalu does

o_O So Gerd Müller never had that record either? I feel deceived!

Yeah, I've always thought that Messi would struggle on a hot and humid night in the Zambian premier league tbh...

It's unofficial. I'm sure Pele will next come out and say he scored 111 goals in one year, with only 2 of them being in recognized national level.

Messi breaks goalscoring record.

Madridist newspaper finds an unknown guy who made a bigger record no one has ever heard off in a remote and obscure country.

Souns legit.

First, despite the report of the referee at the Camp Nou last weekend, Marca has officially decreed that Messi’s first goal against Bilbao was an own-goal scored by Basque defender Fernando Amorebieta. This explains why Messi has 85 goals and not 86. In order to be able to report, along with the rest of the world, that Messi broke the record on Sunday, Marca had only one recourse: they would have to subtract a goal from Muller’s tally. And so, Marca’s editors dutifully dug into the archives and uncovered a goal attributed to Muller in June of 1972 in an international match against the USSR. Video evidence, presented in the paper last week, indicates “unequivocally” that this too was an own-goal scored by the Soviet keeper and not the German striker. So in the Marcaverse, Muller has scored 84 goals, Messi 85, and order is restored. Sort of.

In all likelihood, Messi will go on to score more goals in 2012, effectively making this a moot point. But it is fascinating to see the lengths to which Marca has gone to stick to their contrarian version of history.

http://www.totalbarca.com/2012/opinion-pieces/marcas-rewrites-history-twice/

Respect

Gil wrote:Respect

For whom? It's Zambian league back in the days, come on man...

Zambia is a league too ffs.

Chitalu

Don't rewrite that record book just yet—unless the name Godfrey Chitalu is going in.

The world celebrated Lionel Messi over the weekend as the Argentine surpassed Germany's Gerd Müller with his 86th goal of 2012. Müller had previously held what most consider the world record for goals in a year with 85.

It turns out, though, that there might be another record holder. According to multiple African sources, former Zambian international Godfrey Chitalu once scored 107 goals in a single year. That would mean neither Messi nor Müller ever held the record.

So who is Godfrey Chitalu?

According to the Nigerian Daily Post, Chitalu "is regarded as the greatest Zambian player ever." Nicknamed Ucar, Chitalu reportedly is Zambia's all-time leading scorer.

But that's not all. Chitalu reportedly scored 107 goals in all competitions in 1972, the same year Müller set the former FIFA record with 85.

So why isn't Chitalu in the FIFA record books? ZambianWatchdog.org explains:

(The Zambian FA) explained that they are currently trawling through their archives in order to get the late striker the credit that they feel he deserves.

They said, 'We have this record, which has been recorded in Zambian football, but unfortunately it has not been recorded in world football. Even as the world has been looking at Lionel Messi’s record, breaking Gerd Muller’s, the debate and discussion back here has been why Godfrey’s goals are not being recognised.'

What next, then? If the goals are verified, should Chitalu be recognized ahead of both Müller and Messi?

Or, on the other hand, would it be unfair to compare Chitalu's goals to Messi's. The level of competition between Zambian football in the 1970s and today's top-class European game is likely a big one.

Still, that shouldn't take away from Chitalu's accomplishment—if, of course, it can be verified. Chitalu died in 1993, in the plane crash that took the lives of the entire Zambian national team. He was the team's manager.

So, what do you think, readers? Let us know in the comments below.

-Article from bleach Report.
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1440990-godfrey-chitalu-did-zambian-striker-score-more-goals-than-lionel-messi

Funny how it only comes out like 30+ years later.

This is stupid lol. If they verify the goals then he will hold the world record only fair. As a football fan with knowledge of the sport I will still recognize gerd muller and Lionel messi as the record holders. They will hold the european numbers and thats really all that matters. The African leagues in te 70s were probably on par with my nephews 13 year old football league. What a way for Spanish newspaper to try to take the glory away from messi.