OF the galaxy of soccer stars coming to South Africa next year one of the smallest in stature is likely to make the biggest impact.

Though Argentina’s diminutive Lionel Messi stands only 1,69m tall he is already a footballing giant after his exploits for club and country.

Messi is living proof that dynamite does come in small packages.

His style and ability have been compared to legend Diego Maradona, who himself declared Messi his “successor”.

Anyone lucky enough to have watched the “El Clasico” when Barcelona beat Real Madrid 1-0 last Sunday will understand why Messi is rated so highly.

He is a special talent who is likely to hold the world in the palm of his hand for short four weeks next year.

Thank goodness the time is fast approaching when the czars of world soccer’s boardrooms will reluctantly climb off their lofty perches and leave the stage vacant for players like Messi.

Though Fifa chief Sepp “Blabbermouth” Blatter’s voice will drone on tediously throughout the 2010 World Cup it will be drowned out by the showings of the planet’s best players.

It’s almost time for the real stars like Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, Wayne Rooney and Fernando Torres to let the ball do the talking for a welcome change.

The self-centred Blatter now even refers to his own modest playing days when trying to explain certain matters.

Naturally Blatter could not help but get involved in the row over Frenchman Thierry Henry’s handball which sent Ireland crashing out of the World Cup.

Said Blatter: “When I was a centre forward in my junior team, I definitely gained an advantage by pulling a defender’s jersey in order to score a goal. And I didn’t go and see the referee to tell him about it,” the Fifa chief said.

Well who really cares what a centre forward in the junior team does? What will matter to fans around the world is whether any of the modern generation of footballers enjoys the kind of World Cup that will elevate him to the highest level of the game.

Following the careers of the great Pele and the magnificent Maradona, no player has been able to challenge their special place in the history of the game.

Though Pele and Maradona enjoyed exceptional playing careers with their clubs it was their World Cup exploits that elevated them into the realms of footballing immortality.

One player who could be on the brink of attaining that special level of acclaim is Messi, who was named European Fotballer of the Year this week.

Critics have already started comparing the young master to his countryman Maradona, claiming he has the ball control and burst of pace the former Argentinian great did.

Messi’s goal against Getafe in a King’s Cup match in April 2007 was almost a replica of the former Argentina captain’s spectacular solo effort against England in the 1986 World Cup.

At the 2006 World Cup Messi played only a small role in the tournament.

Despite his lack of height he rose majestically to head home the second goal last year to help Barcelona beat Manchester United 2-0 in the Champions League final.

Messi will have the world at his feet in South Africa.