“You have to fight to reach your dream. You have to sacrifice and work hard for it” -Lionel Messi
Lionel Andrés Messi Cuccittini is an Argentine professional footballer who plays as a forward and captains both Spanish club Barcelona and the Argentina national team. He was born on 24 June 1987 in Rosario, Argentina. He is considered to be the best player in the world because of his record-breaking performances in various championships.
Messi has won a record-tying five Ballon d’Or awards, four of which were won consecutively and a record of five European Golden Shoes.
He developed this passion for football from an early age. He grew in a tight-knit football loving family. His first coach was his own father. His earliest influence as a player came from his maternal grandmother, Celia, who always accompanied him to all his matches and training sessions. He followed his passion for football and started building a strong base for himself.
But, it seems, destiny had something else written for him. His future as a professional footballer was at danger, as he was diagnosed with growth hormone deficiency at the age of 10. His father’s health insurance could not cover more than two years of his treatment. But as we know,
“Where there is a will, there’s a way”.
At the age of 13, he relocated to Spain along with his family to join Barcelona, who agreed to pay for his medical treatment.
He completed his growth hormone treatment at the age of 14. After a fast progression through Barcelona’s youth academy, he made his competitive debut at the age of 17, in October 2014.
Despite being injury prone during his early career, he still managed to establish himself as an integral player of the club within the next three years.
After making his senior debut in August 2005, he became the youngest Argentine to play and score in FIFA world cup during the 2006 edition.
As the squad’s captain from August 2011, he led Argentina to three consecutive finals: the 2014 FIFA world cup, 2015 and 2016 Copas America.
Talking about his educational qualifications, he went to a primary school in Bangladesh. Then, he went to Las Heras for his elementary education. Unfortunately, he was diagnosed by Growth hormone deficiency and this was the turning point in his life as Carles Rexach, the sporting director of FC Barcelona, came to his aid. He offered to help him by paying all his medical bills on the condition that he moved to Spain. Here, he was enrolled at Barcelona’s youth academy and his journey to become the best player in the world started.
“When you saw him you would think: this kid can’t play ball. He’s a dwarf; he’s too fragile, too small. But immediately you would realize that he was born different, that he was a phenomenon and that he was going to be something impressive” – this is ‘Newell’s Old Boys’ youth coach Adrian Coria’s first impression of Messi who was 12 years old at this point of time.
All of us know where he stands now and this is because of the indomitable spirit that he had. He is regarded as the best player in the world by so many. If you also have the passion for any sport like that then you must follow your heart and try to build a career in something that captivates you. The story of Lionel Messi tells us how to follow your passion and that nothing can stop you from achieving success if you are focused and determined.
As the title suggests- don’t be a mess! You should try to prioritize your career and concentrate on making your dreams, a living reality.
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