Barcelona star Lionel Messi is arguably the best footballer in the present world.
While there are other sensational footballers, Messi’s achievement and record speak it all.
Messi started playing football as a boy and in 1995 joined the youth team of Newell’s Old Boys (a Rosario-based top-division football club).
Messi’s phenomenal skills garnered the attention of prestigious clubs on both sides of the Atlantic. At age 13 Messi and his family relocated to Barcelona, and he began playing for FC Barcelona’s under-14 team.
He scored 21 goals in 14 games for the junior team, and he quickly graduated through the higher-level teams until at age 16 he was given his informal debut with FC Barcelona in a friendly match.
In the 2004–05 season Messi, then 17, became the youngest official player and goal scorer in the Spanish La Liga (the country’s highest division of football).
Though only 5 feet 7 inches (1.7 metres) tall and weighing 148 pounds (67 kg), he was strong, well-balanced, and versatile on the field.
Since then Messi has been playing for Barcelona and won many awards such as: European Golden Shoe, Ballon dOr, FIFA World Player of the Year, Pichichi Trophy, UEFA Men’s Player of the Year.
UEFA Team of The Year, FIFA FIFPro World XI, Golden Boy, UEFA Champions League Top Scorer, UEFA Champions League Top Goalscorer, UEFA Club Footballer of the Year, La Liga Award for Best Player… and the list is endless.
Even so, the player is still strong and features in almost all Barcelona matches, with his coach Valverde declaring he (Messi) is a crucial figure for Barcelona.