The Hindu : Sport / Football : A journey to the roots of Messi

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Wednesday, Apr 26, 2006

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Sport - Football

A journey to the roots of Messi

Marcelo R. Androetto

Rosario (Argentina): There is virtually no grass; the field is uneven, covered with little stones and bits of glass. It is on this barren pitch, at the Camp Nou where FC Barcelona plays, where Lionel Messi first began his affair with football. The field was used by the local team Grandoli, located in a rather modest area of Rosario, was the first "formal" site where the Argentinean striker, the new star of Barcelona team, at the tender age of five gave an inkling of the ability, speed and shooting skills he was later to demonstrate at the top level.

Messi went to the club on insistence of his grandmother for Grandoli when the club was missing a player. He walked the 15 blocks from his home to the ground, went onto the field and astonished the onlookers. "On his debut he left everybody gaping. He was such a small thing amid players who were much bigger, two or three years older, but he would take the ball and shoot off. They immediately signed him up," revealed Abel Fragotti, Messi's neighbour.

A born player

The poor state of the pitch did not prevent Messi from putting on outstanding performances against other teams. By learning how to avoid stones, glass and patches of bad grass, he also picked up the moves required to get past opposing players. Jorge Messi, father of little Lionel and coach for a while of that children's team, began to realise that something special was in the making. "I soon realised that he was different, that he would make the difference. Of course kids sometimes change, but I was pretty sure that he would triumph", he said.

Grandolfi was indeed his first club, but Messi had already been playing on the streets of his district since the age of three. "Leo" first used a pavement to bounce the ball made of rags, rubber or leather, just as he now does in Barcelona when he and his Brazilian teammate Ronaldinho move up the field. It is the same middle class area where Messi, now 18, is welcomed as a "prodigal son" every time he returns from Spain to Rosario.

First love

Messi's life revolved solely around football. Even school was just an excuse to do the only thing he really loved. "He was tireless when running after the ball at recess", recalled Diana Ferretti, one of his primary school teachers. Like Diego Maradona at the end of his career, Messi also wore the jersey of Newell's Old Boys, a club to which he moved at age seven at the insistence of his brother Rodrigo. It didn't take long for him to convince everybody that his carefree dribbling, his speed and exquisite ball handling were for real. "He was a genius; he made me laugh because everybody playing against him looked clumsy. One day a coach promised him a pastry for every goal he scored, and that day he fired in eight," recollected Claudio Biancucchi, his uncle and godfather.

Adrian Coria, one of the trainers at Newell's reminisced, "He did everything by himself. He produced brilliant football. He was physically small, but when he got going there was no stopping him. And furthermore, a goal was a certainty." For Coria, "even if it might seem outrageous, Messi could easily be the successor to Maradona".

Messi regarded football as fun, but he gradually began assuming responsibility. He shined his boots, prepared his kit, knew exactly when practice would take place, and even skipped some birthday celebrations to get a good sleep before training sessions.

High hopes

Now family and friends are hoping that Messi will be the big star at the 2006 World Cup. They are certain that Argentina manager Jose Pekerman will have him in the starting line-up.

"Wherever he played, he was always the best. He is going to be the best in the world, and in Germany as well," predicted his uncle Biancucchi, who noted that although "Maradona is the greatest, Lionel will be another `even greater'.

While Messi is displaying his skills in Europe, there is a boy on the streets back home who hopes to emulate him. — DPA

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