A newspaper clipping of Lionel Messi's first ever interview has been found and translated, 22 years after it was published by Rosario-based newspaper Diario La Capital.
The 35-year-old forward has the chance to complete football on Sunday afternoon as Argentina come up against reigning world champions France at the Lusail Stadium in Doha.
Messi, who has been at his brilliant best throughout this winter's tournament, will be heralded by many as the greatest of all time if he manages to help La Albiceleste to a historic World Cup win.
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His career has been nothing short of remarkable. He has lifted Seven Ballon d'Ors, six European golden boots and three International golden balls since making his professional debut for Barcelona, aged 17.
But before moving to the Catalan giants, the naturally-gifted Messi honed his skills in Rosario with boyhood club Newell’s Old Boys.
In fact, weeks before signing for Barcelona when he was just 13, the talented youngster gave his first-ever interview with Rosario-based publication Diario La Capital.
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The local paper began the segment by saying: “Lionel Messi is a player in the 10th division and the attacking playmaker for the team.
"He’s not only one of the up and coming players in Newell’s academy but has a huge future ahead of him, because, despite his height, he manages to go past one, two, dribble, score goals, but above all he enjoys himself with the ball and as of today he’s being revealed to the world.”
As you can see in the translation below, Messi was asked a range of different quickfire question, ranging from his favourite book to his ultimate goal. Check it out below:
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A hero: Two, my dad Jorge and my god-father Claudio.
A coach: Everyone I’ve had, because I’ve learnt something from all of them ((Gabriel, Morales, Domínguez, Vecchio and Coria).
A fitness coach: Pablo Sánchez.
A player: Two, my brother and my cousin.
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A team: Newell’s
A hobby: Listening to music.
A type of music: Cuarteto and Cumbia.
A TV programme: Primicias
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A magazine: Pasión Rojinegra (Newell’s fan magazine)
A book: The Bible.
A film: Baby’s Day Out.
Other sport: Handball.
A model: Nicole Neumann.
A food: Chicken and sauce.
A subject: Spanish
A job: PE teacher
An objective: Finish secondary school.
A goal: Play in the first division.
A joy: When we were champions.
A sadness: My grandmother’s death.
A hope: To play in the first division with Newell’s
A memory: When my grandmother took me to play football for the first time.
A dream: To play for Argentina.
A tale to tell: When we travelled to Peru and became champions.
Humility: What a human being must never lose.
Argentinian youth teams: I’d love to play for them.
Expectations for this year: To be champions again.
Family: My dad Jorge, my mum Celia and my brothers and sisters Rodrigo, Natalia and Marisol.
Friends: I’m lucky I’ve got lots of good friends – if I tried to name them I’d forget someone.
What does Newell’s mean in your life? Everything, absolutely everything.
Messi's time at Newell's would also go down in the history books.
In fact, a former Newell's employee searched up Lionel Messi's goals for the club and apparently, he scored 234 goals in 176 games between the age of 6 and 12, according to a report from Diario Ole.
In an interview with TYC Sports in 2020, the former Barcelona forward opened up about his "dream" to sign for boyhood club Newell's one day.
"I have the dream of being able to play for Newell's in Argentina, but I don't know if it's really going to happen because I have a family that is ahead of my desire," Messi said.
"It's a dream I've had since I was little, but I have a family, I have three children, I live in a place that has given me everything and where I am calm and can give my children a spectacular future.
"We think much more about that than my desire of playing football in Argentina. I will try to convince the family, because today we have to convince the children too."
Topics: Lionel Messi, Argentina, Barcelona
Jack Kenmare