The Miracle Of Lionel Messi: Embrace Him And Celebrate His Greatness

Mark Twain once said that the two most important days in your life are the day you are born and the day you find out why. 

But I would add a third: the day I met Lionel Messi. 

It was a sticky, humid and thunderstorm-ridden day in Fort Lauderdale back in the summer of 2023, which was Messis arrival for Inter Miami. The night before the Leagues Cup final, which would eventually become Leos first trophy with the club, and his 44th career title, which would become a record. But I was inside one of the suites at Inter Miamis former stadium, waiting for an exclusive interview with a player I had covered — and just like any other mortal – marveled at throughout my life and career. 

As a football journalist, the values of objectivity are imperative foundations of our work, and its important to never get carried away when you meet someone you admire tremendously. It also goes back to the well-known saying that you “should never meet your heroes,” some words of wisdom that were said from one legendary icon (John Lennon) to another (Mick Jagger). But I actually attribute this piece of advice more to lines from Gustave Flauberts 1856 novel Madame Bovary, which read: “Don’t touch your idols: a little gold always rubs off.”

But with Messi, the gold never does.  

And to me, in order to be a true serviceman of the sport as a journalist, you cant just report on the beautiful game, you have to feel it. You have to live inside the skin of what it means to be a supporter, because they are the heart, the flesh and bones of a club or a national team. So to meet Messi is to represent what it would mean to any Argentinian who would give their right arm to do the same. You owe it to them.  

THE CONVERSATION BETWEEN Messi and I was about him and his familys happiness, now finally in Miami after leaving PSG, his new life in the United States and the expectations of the next few years. And this was in the summer of 2023, not long after winning the World Cup in Qatar and months before receiving his record eighth Ballon dOr. 

Messi, ever the introvert, was extremely attentive, quiet and thoughtful in his responses. This is a trait you all must know. Hes not shy but rather an internal thinker. But as a kid it was much worse in school. When he wanted to ask a teacher a question, he would need his best friend to do it for him. During his trial at Barcelona when he was 13, the established stars like Gerard Piqué and Cesc Fàbregas — from the famed 87 generation —would remember Messi would not speak nor ask any questions. 

But he didnt need to as they learned that everything he needed to say would be on the pitch. 

Back to my encounter with Messi: I remember one point when I asked him how successful the U.S. and MLS can be when it comes to competing with the likes of Europe. His reply? “Their success is up to them.” 

And the reason why I bring that up is because its that type of mindset that fully encapsulates Messi as he has always been a person who truly believes that the rewards of triumph and prosperity are only dictated by one motivating factor: Himself. 

Messi grew up in Rosario, about 170 miles northwest of Buenos Aires. It is the city where the Argentinian flag was first raised during the War of Independence in 1812. 

Messi lived in a humble neighborhood called La Bajada, in a house built by his father and grandfather. He would play in the streets until sunset and would continuously kick the ball on the same spot of the neighbors wall in order to get his angle perfectly right. When he played for Newells Old Boys, his first trip away from Argentina was in Perú and the night before the big tournament, he ate some chicken that didnt agree with him. The next morning, the head coach was worried and wanted to take him to hospital. Messi argued and said all he needed was Ga