RIO DE JANEIRO — The comparisons with flamboyant and outspoken legend Diego Maradona have surely become tiresome to World Cup star Lionel Messi of Argentina, but they will be intensified to a whole new decibel over the next 48 hours. Nearly three decades after Maradona carried Argentina on his back to the 1986 World Cup title, his quieter more humble heir, Messi, has a chance to duplicate Diego’s heroics, wearing the captain’s arm band against the same exact opponent: Germany. If Messi can work his magic Sunday, or even play a peripheral role while drawing defenders to open up space for his teammates, he will once and for all put an end to the debate of whether he measures up to Maradona as one of the best players of all time. He certainly would equal El Diego as the best players ever to wear the sky blue and white No. 10. The Barcelona playmaker is a four-time World Player of the Year. He has won six Spanish La Liga titles, three Champions League trophies, and is the all-time Barcelona leading scorer with 354 goals in 425 matches. He is the highest-paid player in the world at $27 million per year;…