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The world’s best football player in the history of football and also known as GOAT ( Greatest Of All Time), Lionel Messi is a Professional Football player who plays as any position in the attack. He plays for football club Barcelona and his nation Argentina.
| Quick Info | |
|---|---|
| Full Name | Lionel Andrés Messi |
| Date Of Birth | 24th June 1987 |
| Birth Place | Rosario, Argentina |
| Parent(s) | Jorge Messi (Father) Celia Cuccittini (Mother) |
| Profession | Footballer |
| Wife(s) | Antonella Roccuzzo (2017 - Present) |
| Age | 33 years |
| Height | 5 ft 7 in |
| Children | 3 |
| Net Worth | US $400 million |
This man isn’t called GOAT just because of his plays, but also he has won many awards in his career, including six Ballon d’Or and many other individual awards. He helped his club win the Champions League, La Liga, and other tournaments as well. This creative, attacking expert and playmaker has the most fans in the world and is ahead of Cristiano Ronaldo.
EARLY LIFE
Lionel Messi was born on 24th June 1987. He is from Rosario, Argentina. He shared his parents with three siblings. His dad Jorge Messi was a steel factory manager, and his mother, Celia Cuccittini, worked in a workshop. Growing in a football-loving family, he developed a passion for football since childhood. He used to play with his brothers and cousins. At the young age of 4, he joined a local club named Grandoli; his grandma was his influence as she stayed with him in his training and matches.
At the child age of six years, he joined Rosario Club. During his playing years with Rosario, he scored more than 500 goals. At the age of 10, it was found he was suffering from growth hormone deficiency. His family didn’t have money for his treatment, and club Rosari didn’t keep its promise to cure it for him. In September 2000, they moved to Spain and let Lionel Messi take the trail for Barcelona. He wasn’t selected right after, but on 14th December he was signed in for Barcelona.
He completed his hormone treatment at the age of 14. His first season with Barcelona (2002-03), Lionel Messi scored the most goals: 36 goals in 30 games. He was offered by Arsenal to join, but he chose to stay.
CAREER AND AWARDS
Lionel Messi was magical from his early days. Leo made his first debut for Barcelona at the age of 16 and even scored a goal and became the youngest player to score in the franchise. After his performances, he started to grab attention and began to play for the first team in no time. Even the great Ronaldinho said Messi would be a more significant player than himself.
Starting on 24th June 2005, on his birthday, he signed for the senior team. In September, he played in La Liga with jersey number 19. He became the first choice winger for every match after that. On 2006 17th May, Champions League Final against Arsenal, Barcelona won, but Messi didn’t celebrate cause he was out from the game because of injury. He kept on getting injured for many months, but his 2006-07 season went well.
Lionel Messi scored his first hattrick on 10th March 2007 in el Clasico. As of his dribbling and the remarkable skill, he was compared to legend Maradona by that time. Lionel Messi also made his appearance in World Cup 2006 and scored the first goal on 1st March 2006. They were only till the quarterfinal and cant make up to the final.
Giving his best for football, Barcelona achieves way lot. His season 2008-09 was the best so far. The former star Ronaldinho left jersey ten was granted to Lionel Messi. He was the star of Barcelona now. Being a versatile player, Messi proved it by playing in any position in forward.
On 13th May 2009, they won Copa Del Rey with Lionel Messi scoring one goal. They also won La Liga that season. Messi was entirely on form, and he had 23 league goals. And with all surprise, Barcelona won the Champions League with Messi scoring header in the final against Manchester United on 27th May. With his outstanding performance, Lionel Messi won the Ballon d’Or and FIFA World Player of the Year.
Messi never stopped surprising the world. Barcelona won the other two Champions League in 2011 and 2015. Messi was so close to Fifa World Cup in 2014 they lost against Germany. Messi told it was his dream to lift the FIFA World Cup for Argentina. With Barcelona, he has won a total of 10 La Liga titles. This all is not enough to describe his greatness, as he has won many individual awards.
He has an existing record of a player to get most Ballon d’Or, which is six. For the FIFA World Cup Golden Ball, he got it once in 2014. In the 2018 World Cup, Lionel Messi tried his best, but a single-player cant does everything alone as we know. So Argentina was not even close to winning.
Being a short player and lacking behind physically was not his excuse. Instead, he used this as his weapon, control over the ball, reflexes, and movements to build his short and small body. Messi never gave up, and here we can see him at the peak of the world today.
In 2020 it was rumoured that Lionel Messi is leaving Barca, which was authentic, as he also thought about it, but later, Messi changed his mind and planned to stay in Barcelona for a little longer.
AGE, HEIGHT, NATIONALITY, AND OTHER FACTS
As many people believe him as the god of football and inspiring many people out, their Messi is just 33 years old and created history already. He has contributed in an uncountable way to his nation and club. Despite disease and other difficulties, Lionel Messi has got to this peak today.
He is an Argentine and practices Roman Catholic as religion. His zodiac sign is Cancer. Messi is short in height compared to other footballers standing 5 feet 7 inches (170 cm). His eyes and hair are black. He has tattoos in his left leg and right hand. His jersey number is 10, and he is left-footed.
PERSONAL LIFE
Messi is a loyal man toward not only his club but also toward his relationship. He dated Antonella Roccuzzo since 2008, and this relationship was as healthy and beautiful. They got married on 30th June 2017. He has three kids, all three sons. Born in 2012, Thiago is the eldest then Mateo got to see this beautiful world in 2015. Their third kid was born after marriage in 2018. Messi is always able to manage his time with his family.
His granny was the most significant influence for him, so whenever he scores a goal, his celebration points to the sky in the tribute to his late grandmother.
Messi is a great philanthropist and has provided funds for different organizations consisting of UNICEF and all. He also founded his foundation named Leo Messi Foundation that helps needy children with their education, health issue, and sports. Such a great and kind person are just exceptions in this evil world, but maybe it is also why he is the greatest of all time and to be known in the future.
NET WORTH
Messi was the highest-paid athlete in the world in 2019 as ranked by Forbes. Hence he has an estimated net worth of $400 Million.
