LIONEL ANDRÉS "LEO" MESSI

 

BIOGRAPHY

Lionel Andrés "Leo" Messi, an Argentine football player who mostly plays as a striker for FC Barcelona and captains his country, was born on June 24, 1987. By the time he was 21, Messi had been nominated for the FIFA World Player of the Year award and won it in 2009 and 2010. Diego Maradona, who himself referred to Messi as his "successor," has been compared to him because of the way he plays and his little frame.

Messi started playing football at a young age, and Barcelona quickly recognized his talent and potential. In 2000, he came to Europe with his family after leaving Rosario's Newell's Old Boys junior club because Barcelona was able to heal his growth hormone shortage. He broke the team record for the youngest footballer to score a league goal upon making his debut in the 2004–05 campaign.Major distinctions soon followed, with Barcelona winning La Liga in Messi's rookie campaign and the league and Champions League double in 2006. His breakout season came in the 2006–07 campaign, when he started playing regularly for the first team, scored a hat-trick in El Clásico, and finished with 14 goals in 26 league games. The following year, 2008–09, Messi enjoyed his best playing season yet, scoring 38 goals and contributing significantly to a treble-winning campaign. The following season, 2009–10, saw a record-breaking season surpass this one when Messi equaled Ronaldo's record for Barcelona with 47 goals in all competitions. With 53 goals in all competitions in the 2010–11 season, he once again broke this record.

Messi has won three Champions League crowns and five La Liga championships. He scored in two of those finals, which were played against Manchester United in 2009 and 2011. While Barcelona's 2006 victory over Arsenal occurred off the field, he still won a tournament winner's medal. Messi became just the third player (after Gerd Müller and Jean-Pierre Papin) to top-score in three straight European Champion Clubs' Cup seasons after scoring 12 goals in the 2010–11 Champions League. However, once the Champions League's format changed in 1992, Messi became the first player to win the top scorer awards for three straight seasons.

With six goals, including two in the championship game, Messi was the tournament's leading scorer in 2005. He quickly established himself as a key player for Argentina's senior international squad. He was the youngest Argentine to compete in the FIFA World Cup in 2006, and the following year, he finished in second place at the Copa América competition. With the Argentina Olympic football squad, he achieved his first international distinction—an Olympic gold medal—in 2008 in Beijing. In 66 games for his country, Messi has scored 19 goals.

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