Then they will start to take the ball off Leo. And then begin to keep him away from it.
‘There is more and more responsibility and it is more and more difficult to maintain the level,’ reflects Rexach. ‘Messi has taken on that responsibility and embraces it. But he also needs others who can take over, to bag the goals if he isn’t there, so that we are ahead when he comes back: these days you suffer three defeats and you can lose a league.’
‘I dare say he will have to make a change,’ says the former Argentina twenty-eight, ‘something changed in my head, making me want to be a coach. I see that he’s always going to want to play. And he’ll be thirty-three, thirty-four and will still want to carry on playing. But he will have to prepare himself for it, over the years, not now, but later on, to see what he likes.’
In April 2013, Jorge Messi explained in Kicker what he imagines that transformation on the pitch will consist of: ‘I can see him playing deeper, as a playmaker, something that he already does from time to time at Barça. He starts off many passages of play from deep.’
Pep Guardiola trusts Leo’s intelligence and intuition to make the next step. ‘Central midfielder? No. Well, I don’t know. It’s an option I guess. I just know that if he’s tip-top, his team will always be the favourite to win any match he plays in until the day he retires. When he is on form. Obviously you can’t be at the top level for eleven months a year for fifteen to twenty years of a sporting career. But if he gets it into his head that he is fit enough, no team can stop him.’
The tactical change, his new evolution, is also a result of progress by opposing teams that are very compact in the middle so that Messi cannot cause damage. He is at his physical peak, it is his best sporting moment, you cannot speak about physical decline, but traps are being placed in front of him so that he cannot develop his game. Maybe it is time he made the most of the fear that he strikes into rivals by looking for his team-mates, not just to use them for one-twos and finish the play, but so he can become a false number 10. As his father says, the evolution of the man who inspires and creates for the team has already begun. For it to be effective, el Tata Martino will also have to adjust the Barcelona set-up.
And one day he will go home, to play, to be with his people and to enjoy himself again, his mother included. At Newell’s.
And he will eventually stop playing. We will no longer see him every weekend.
Di Stéfano gave up, Pelé gave up. So did Maradona.
And he will have to be well looked after so that the loss is tolerable. And those he loves will also have to be prepared. Everyone, his family, is a Leo who will stop being Leo one day. ‘It just so happens I was talking about that with my wife the other day,’ explains Jorge Messi in Kicker. ‘I told her the day Leo stops playing, I think I will lose all excitement I have for the game and will stop watching it. I love everything about football and imagining that Leo will not play any more one day distresses me. I don’t even want to think about it.’
Martin Souto: [about if he would be a coach] Do you like it? In the future do you plan to …?
Leo Messi: And … I always say no, as things are today I’m not going to be a coach, but at some point in the future I don’t know what might happen. Maybe, I will want to try and give it a go.
Martin Souto: Let’s see … let’s pretend, let’s play …how would Messi’s team play?
Leo Messi: I have learnt things from all the coaches I’ve had. During my time at Barça I’ve been lucky enough to be with Rijkaard, Guardiola. The same ideas, the same game philosophy, but I can tell you: I don’t even think about it because I don’t think I’ll be one.
(Interview with Leo Messi by Martín Souto on TyC, March 2013)
In the same interview, Lionel explains how one day, quite recently, he went to see his brother Matías play in the village, with the boys, with Ever Banega’s brother. ‘The Flea’ wanted to join in.
And they would not let him.
He was not on the player list for that amateur league and the opposition would not accept that he could be added to his brother’s team.
Obviously.
Martín Souto: When you finish with football, would you like to live in Argentina?
Leo Messi: Yes, today I’d say yes, I don’t know what might happen tomorrow. My son is going to be growing up, he will definitely go to school here and I don’t know when I’ll go back there. I would like to live in Rosario. I don’t know, because I’m very settled here. I have been here for many years and it’s my home. I would like to go back to Rosario, but I don’t know what will happen.
A newborn son often becomes an incentive. Many parents want to start and finish the training session, dedicate that moment to football with all the intensity they are capable of, in order to go back home to play with their sons. Piqué, Cesc and Leo belong to that group, having all become fathers at around the same time.
As with all changes, there are losses. Leo has grown up with his family by his side, some closer than others, but only geographically. Emotionally they have been a rock. And now it’s his turn to split from them, and live with his wife, with his son. When that happens, the player, who knows his relatives have sacrificed everything for him, sometimes feels in debt in some way and something inside him breaks a little. Newfound independence is sometimes accompanied by physical changes, house, town, surroundings. Tension. And that can also cause injuries.
The birth of a son brings new anxieties with it.
Antonella would often tell Lionel that having a child had to be, was going to be, the most beautiful thing that can happen to you. ‘Until you have one, you can’t appreciate it,’ ‘the Flea’ reflects on TyC. ‘You just can’t explain it.’
Thiago was born on the seventh floor of a hospital overlooking the Camp Nou. The Ñuls supporters celebrated with the banner ‘Welcome Thiago Messi to the LEPROSO WORLD. Thiago Messi Member N. 2.288.152.’ An amusing attempt to make him a club member, but it is not true that he is one. You can imagine which team he will support, but Leo has not registered him yet.
Now he changes Thiago’s nappies, he bathes him. And he says that the child has only peed on him once …
And, meanwhile, life changes him. ‘You no longer think about yourself. You think about him, so that he never has any type of problem whatsoever. Yes, it changes, of course it changes the way you perceive things,’ said Messi in El País.
‘Leo is a different man,’ says Oscar Ustari. ‘When I ask him, he sends me photos, my son is even named Bautista Lionel after him. “Do you change nappies?” Yes, he tells me. [Thiago] is his new ball, much more important. In private he’s a very cheerful person, who’s always making jokes with people he feels close to, pestering them all the time. And now he’s a father.’
‘Thiago comes first, everything else after,’ he said on ESPN. In his first match after his son was born, he wore boots with Thiago’s name on the heels and a few weeks later he sported a wristband with the words ‘I love you, Thiago’. And on Father’s Day he tattooed his name on his calf.
And almost everything is new: his first Christmas as a father was different. ‘Now he’s here and he’s the one who gets all the cuddles, I’m learning to be a dad,’ he confessed to Olé.
But not everything changes. Leo still has a reinvigorating siesta on the sofa or in bed. Just before nodding off, he looks at his phone, where his son’s face appears.
On finishing training, Leo goes home to Thiago and, if he’s asleep, it will be he who wakes him up. He goes out for a walk with his wife or he drives to his father’s house to spend the afternoon there. When he travels with the team, Thiago looks for him without understanding why his dad is not there, and Leo calls him and tells him that he misses him and that he cannot wait to get back to be with him. Thiago listens without understanding yet. It’s the same story for all parents all over the world.
Leo says that even his nieces and nephews call him Messi. ‘I say to them, “You are a Messi too!”’ Maybe he will have to explain to h
is son who ‘the Flea’ was.
And one day he will take Thiago to the park to play football. When he’s ten years old, Leo will be around 37.
And he will pass him the ball.
Afterword
Sandro Rosell, President of FC Barcelona
Leo Messi is a unique player, for me the best I have ever seen and the best in the history of the game. Leo is a footballer capable of doing exceptional things, at a speed and with a precision that are beyond the reach of the rest. He makes the difference individually, but what is more he is a unifying force who can also play for his team-mates and for that reason he scores goals with the same ease that he lays on assists. We will have to wait a long, long time before we see another player of his human and sporting dimensions.
Leo the person is at the same level as Leo the player, and that’s the greatest accolade I can offer him. His way of being matches perfectly the values that the club tries to get across to its players in the junior categories, namely humility, solidarity among your peers and the ambition to fight for your objectives. Messi is a shy, calm, humble young man who gets pleasure from the small things in life. He leads by action and not by words. He does his talking on the pitch and he does it better than anyone.
I’d say that since he made his debut, the present Barcelona, one of the greatest teams of all time, could not have managed without him. Nothing would have been the same.
Messi was very lucky to find a coach like Frank Rijkaard when he came into the first team. He knew how to bring him along without any rush or urgency. Perhaps at certain times Leo did not understand why he was not playing as much as he wanted to, but I know that afterwards he was able to thank Rijkaard for always doing what was best for him. I’d also like to highlight the work of Josep Colomer, the man who laid the path for Leo until handing him over to Rijkaard in the first team. Negotiating that road was as hard – perhaps even harder – as making his first team debut.
The relationship between Ronaldinho and Leo was an excellent one. Ronaldinho adopted Messi when he arrived in the first team, and protected him like an older brother. Ronaldinho’s extrovert character was in direct contrast to Messi’s shyness, but the Brazilian was a major reason as to why he gained in confidence and he was a bridge in his relationship with the rest of his team-mates.
The 5–0 victory over Madrid. That is probably the best Barcelona game I have ever seen. Messi showed the world quite clearly that he is the number one. He didn’t score but he had an exceptional match. He was a nightmare for the defence, laid on two goals, was everywhere, pressured, stole the ball, was unstoppable. The look of joy on his face at the end of the game said it all.
The day he won the 2010 Ballon d’Or, with Xavi and Iniesta in second and third places, was one of the happiest days I can remember, not just because Leo won it, but because the top three nominations were all Barcelona players, which was in effect recognition from the whole world of La Masia and of our style of football. It is a golden page in the club’s history. Even though it does not count as a title, it is up there with winning the Champions League. Messi was very pleased to have won it, but I’m convinced he would have been just as happy had the award been won by Xavi or Iniesta.
The happiest day of my life as president of Barcelona was on 28 May 2011, the final of the Champions League. That goal by Messi in the fifty-fourth minute that put us 2–1 ahead was key to breaking Manchester United’s resistance. A powerful shot that saw the ball dispatched with an unstoppable left-foot shot. But I also especially remember Leo’s celebration, a mixture of fury and joy. I believe that goal was like a moment of liberation for him.
As for the appointment of our new coach, despite what people might think, Messi had absolutely nothing to do with the selection of Gerardo Martino in July 2013. They did not even know each other, and had never spoken before. Tata brought with him his own ideas of football which are in harmony with those of Barcelona. But, beyond that, Martino is, like Messi, from Rosario, and he is a coach who likes to speak to the players in a very straightforward manner, something that benefits not just Messi but all the other members of the dressing room. Independently of Tata I see a very happy Leo. He is going through an exceptional period in his professional life, he has matured a lot, both as a player and as a person, and the fact that he is now a father will surely help him to continue to be happy in his personal life. Leo has always loved children, and that is something you always see when he is with his nieces and nephews.
Winning the Ballon d’Or again in January 2013 was another historic moment in Leo’s career. He became the first footballer to win the award on four consecutive occasions, and I’m convinced it won’t be his last. Messi will break every record imaginable because he is still only 25 and gets better every year. It is very difficult to imagine just where his ceiling is. He will be the best for as long as he wants to be, for as long as he maintains his ambition and for as long as football remains his number one priority.
Dramatis Personae
(Part 1, Chapter 2. Waiting for Leo)
Eduardo Abrahamian: Former River player and then leader of the Infantiles section at River.
Leandro Benítez: Defender and left-back, former team-mate of Messi in Newell’s ‘Machine of ’87’. His last club was Quilmes Atletico Club.
Nestor Casal: Former workmate of Jorge Messi.
Franco Casanova: Team-mate of Messi in the ‘Machine of ’87’.
Adrián Coria: Leo’s coach in the lower ranks of NOB (Newell’s Old Boys).
Gabriel Digerolamo: Leo Messi’s coach at the beginning in the lower ranks of NOB.
Enrique ‘Quique’ Domínguez: Coach of Leo Messi (1998−99), when he was 11 and 12 years old. His team was known as the ‘Machine of ’87’. It was his last year at the Newell’s school.
Gazzo: Radio host, presenter at the time of the programme Baby Gol.
Leandro Giménez: Ex-player.
Liliana Grabín: Specialist in sports psychology.
Gerardo Grighini: Team-mate of Messi in the lower ranks at Newell’s in ‘the Machine of ’87’.
Juan Cruz Leguizamón: Newell’s goalkeeper in the ‘Machine of ’87’, and friend of Messi. He currently plays for Central Córdoba.
Sergio Levinsky: Author, sociologist and Argentinian journalist.
Kevin Méndez: The Friendship Cup of 1996 in Peru was organised by Cantolao, the team that Kevin Mendez, son of William Mendez, was playing for and in whose house Leo lodged after asking the NOB coaches who their best player was. Today Kevin is a professional chef, and still has the first shirt Leo ever swapped with another player.
William Méndez: During the summer of 1997, Messi lodged at the house of the Mendez family in Pueblo Libre, Peru, during the celebration of a tournament. William is the father of the boy who played with Messi on that occasion.
Roberto Mensi: Member of the Newell’s board, in charge of media. Also a sports reporter. Producer of www.morenoycordoba19hs.com.ar. Columnist on www.elrojinegro.com.
Jorge Messi: Leo Messi’s father.
Matías Messi: Older brother of Leo, Rodrigo’s younger brother.
Bruno Milanesio: Ex-junior player at NOB.
Diego Rovira: NOB’s number 9 and striker during the time Messi was player in ’87.
Nestor Rozín: Former director of Newell’s; leading businessman in Rosario.
Ángel Ruani: Father of ‘Luli’ Ruani, team-mate in the ‘Machine of ’87’.
Roberto Saviano: Italian writer and author of Gomorra, and author of a text on Leo Messi.
Lucas Scaglia: Said to be Leo’s best friend, team-mate at NOB, and cousin of Messi’s wife, Antonella. Now playing with Deportivo Cali in Colombia.
Diego Schwarzstein: Rosario doctor who treated Messi for his hormone growth deficiency.
Federico Vairo: Leading figure in the Fifties and Sixties and then supervisor of the Infantiles trials at River Plate.
Jorge Valdano: Ex-footballer and Argentina coach and world champion with Argentina in the 1986
Mexico World Cup. Played up front; his first club was NOB.
Ernesto Vecchio: Technical director who had Lionel Messi for the longest period in the red and black baby section; recognised trainer.
Claudio Vivas: Trainer and co-ordinator of the Malvinas school (his father was the founder), and also the director of the fourth and fifth sides at Newell’s. Pitch assistant to Bielsa for the national side. One of the architects, along with Tocalli and Pekerman, who ensured Messi played for the Argentine national side.
Diario Olé: Argentinian sports newspaper.
Kicker: Prestigious German sports magazine.
Additional Sources
Abrahamain, Eduardo and Vairo, Federico: quoted in Martínez, Roberto, Barcargentinos, De Vecchi Ediciones, 2013
Benítez, Leandro: article ‘Messi, el gen argentino’, Cabal, Argentina, www.revistacabal.coop
Casanova, Franco: quoted in article by Federico Bassahún, Perfil, Argentina, www.perfil.com
Digeralamo, Gabriel: quoted in Informe Robinson: Messi, Canal Plus. 2007
Mendes, Kevin and Mendez, William: quoted in article by Javier Saúl, Canchallena, Argentina, www.canchallena.lanacion.com.ar
Mensi, Roberto: quoted in article by Maria Julia Andrés, ‘El Diego que hizo crecer a Messi’, http://florecerdelupines.blogspot.com.es
Messi, Jorge: quoted in Martínez, Roberto, Barcargentinnos, De Vecchi Ediciones, 2013; Kicker, Germany; Informe Robinson: Messi, Canal Plus, 2007
Messi, Matías: quoted in Informe Robinson: Messi, Canal Plus, 2007
Rovira, Diego: quoted in article by Ignacio Fusco, Don Julio 1, Argentina, www.revistadonjulio.com
Messi Page 72