Lionel Messi, probably the best player in the world today. He is one of the best and most exciting football talents in the world. He had this endless comparison to former Manchester United winger Cristiano Ronaldo, but he shrugged and helped his team convincingly defeat Manchester United in the 2009 UEFA Champions League final in Rome. How did he get to that spot the top of the world? On cloud seven?
Messi's performances in 2005/06 earned him rave reviews and a place in Argentina's World Cup squad.
As a striker or attacking midfielder, Messi is gifted with exceptional ball control and speed and has the potential to become one of the greatest players football has ever seen.
Barcelona are benefiting from their growing maturity at the highest level and at home in Argentina he is the youngest player to earn the nickname 'the new Maradona'. That's a tough tag to wear, but so far he's worn it well.
However, Messi's story might have ended before it began if Barça hadn't taken him under their wing at a young age.Born in Rosario, Argentina, Messi has shown a great aptitude for football since childhood. He played for a club called Grandoli, which he coached from his father, from the age of five and then switched to Newell's Old Boys.
He showed all the signs of a promising football career, but at the age of 11 he was diagnosed with growth hormone deficiency, which required expensive treatment.
His parents couldn't afford it, but after some tentative hints about Barcelona's Messi talent, they decided to move to Spain. Messi tried it out for Barça and the club were so impressed that they agreed to pay for his medical treatment.
Barça are now getting a huge return on their investment after Messi has risen through the youth ranks all the way up. He was in the first team by 17 and was a full international the following year.
He shone even in a Barcelona team that boasted the likes of Ronaldinho and Samuel Eto'o but failed to complete Barça's run in the UEFA Champions League after his season ended prematurely with a hamstring injury.
He also missed three months of the following season with a broken metatarsal, but the second half of the 2006-07 season was when he really grew up. He became the youngest Barça player to score a hat-trick against closest rivals Real Madrid in El Clásico, scoring 11 goals in the last 13 games of the season.
Barça failed to defend their title in 2007 and lost even more ground to Real Madrid in a difficult 2007/08 season. Messi was the star despite another long injury phase.
Largely due to their form, the Catalan club reached the semi-finals of the Champions League after a domestic title challenge had long since fizzled out.
2007-2008 was "so close but so far" for Messi and Barça. They missed out on the La Liga title against Real and lost to Manchester United by a single goal in the UEFA Champions League semi-finals.
Then came Pep Guardiola. Messi took his game to the next level. He raised the bar.He scored 38 goals in all competitions and helped his team win the treble: Spanish Cup, La Liga and UEFA Champions League. They defeated rivals Real Madrid 6-1 in El Clásico at the Bernabéu and got revenge on Manchester United by beating them in the UEFA Champions League final. Messi scored both times.
Messi is a Spanish citizen but has chosen to represent Argentina. He overcame an injury to compete at the 2006 World Cup and helped his team reach the Copa America final last year.
Messi is said to be dating an Argentinian teenager named Maracena Lemos, an aspiring model he met while recovering from an injury. When they met, he is said to have been only 14 years old.
No injury is likely to shake Messi after overcoming the difficulties of his childhood, but he seems to have had a few bad ones. He tore a thigh in a Champions League game against Chelsea in 2006 before breaking his foot the following season. He was sidelined again for six weeks after tearing a thigh muscle against Celtic in March.He left the field crying.
Moment to remember
Comparisons to Diego Maradona seemed fitting when Messi scored a spectacular goal in a Copa del Rey match against Getafe in April 2007. Messi ran half the field and beat six players before slamming the ball into the net from a tight angle. I remembered Maradona's famous goal very well, as opposed to the infamous one against England in the 1986 World Cup quarter-finals Hungary in Budapest just two minutes after he came on as a substitute.He was judged to have nudged Vilmos Vanczak and left the field in t
