I don't agree with this assessment. You are confusing Messi having some things acquired as opposed to being given.

Barcelona always looks to give him the ball because of how good he is, not because there is a manager telling them to do it. When things are not working they naturally look up to him to solve things. Among players Messi is even more recognized for his ability than fans.

Messi's performance for Argentina show otherwise as well. He does not have the same play makers he had through his career at Barcelona, he has to move deeper to help building up plays and having him moving too far away from the opposition box and away from where he likes to move in, which is behind the holding midfielders, that has cut his ability to be decisive and although never outright playing bad, people are disappointed with his performances.