Where would Barcelona be without Lionel Messi?

Ever since Luis Enrique and Neymar bowed out of the club in 2017, the Blaugrana have slowly become more and more reliant on their star man to the point they've been branded 'Messi FC'.

It's easy to appear reliant on a particular player when they happen to be one of the greatest in history, but you seriously have to wonder what the Catalans will do when he inevitably retires.

Besides, Messi is vital for the club on so many levels and goals are only one part of the equation.

It's sometimes easy to think that the Argentine is some sort of out-and-out goal-scorer, especially when he lifted the European Golden Shoe with an insane 51 goals in 50 games last season.

Messi's incredible passing

But Messi has never been a natural number nine and it's for that reason that he's been able to solidify his status in the GOAT (greatest of all-time) debate by shining in other areas of his game.

Since Andres Iniesta and Xavi waved goodbye to Camp Nou, Messi has arguably been the best passer in the sport and is fast approaching the 300th assist of his career.

We're sure Kevin De Bruyne and Toni Kroos would have something to say about that statement, but there's no denying that Messi is going toe-to-toe with players who are midfielders by trade.

Compilation of Messi's lobbed passes

So, it's only natural that Messi's passing has once again gone under the spotlight after combining brilliantly for Frenkie de Jong's team goal against Real Betis at the weekend.

In fact, his deftly-floated assist has inspired an entire video showcasing how Messi has been 'mastering the lob pass' and it makes for fascinating viewing.

YouTuber 'Wouva' has put together 11 minutes of Messi teeing up his Barcelona teammates with perfectly-weighted passes over the top that seem to work without fail.

Check out the full video down below:

GIVEMESPORT's Kobe Tong says

For me, De Bruyne is the best passer in the world, but that's hardly a criticism of Messi.

The Manchester City man is the better crosser and long passer by my reckoning and with 15 assists in the Premier League already this season, he's well ahead of Messi's total of 11 in La Liga.

But what moves Messi above everyone else is the fact creating opportunities like those in the video aren't even his primary focus, whereas they are for a bona fide playmaker like De Bruyne.

In other words, Messi is a jack of all trades and a master of all of them.