lionel messi biography in english

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His full name is Lionel Andrés Messi. Messi who was born 24 June 1987 is an Argentine soccer player and now participates for La Liga's Barcelona and the Argentine national team. Messi is regarded as one of the best and famous soccer players of his generation, by the age of 21, has received several Ballon d'Or and FIFA World Player of the Year nominations.

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Messi started playing soccer at very early age and his latent was rapidly acclaimed by Barcelona. Making his first appearance in the 2004-2005 season, he broke the La Liga record for the youngest soccer player to take part in a league game, and the youngest to make a league goal as well.

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In 2005 he became the latest teen superstar of Argentine soccer. Lionel Messi was chosen as the player of the tournament at under-20 World Cup on the year; played his first game for the Argentine national team; and made his first goal with the professional team FC Barcelona.Messi was almost immediately being compared to an earlier hero of Argentine soccer, Diego Maradona. He was a member of Argentina's 2006 World Cup team. He assisted Barcelona win an uncommon triple in 2009: the Copa del Rey, Spain's La Liga championship, and also the Champions League.Lionel Messi has been given countless praised from Argentinean coach Diego Maradona in spite of their defeat to Spain. Maradona stated that he was pleased with the Barcelona striker performance on the field.

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On the occasion, Maradona asserted, "The match wasn't brilliant but the team responded well against the champions of Europe. It works for me because the team reacted very well. "Messi played marvelously well, and little by little he is becoming the leader of the team. It is what I want and it is what I hope for."

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From his very early youth it was obvious that Lionel Messi had a gift for soccer. His early gaming skills are still engraved in public memory at La Bajada, a poor neighborhood in Rosario, an Argentine city, where his family still resides. Messi is the star of the World Cup 2010 but no one is really surprised about that.

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Everyone in his hometown, including his mother suggest that Messi was different from all the rest. He was a different kind of soccer player. Messi played for years in the youth scheme of Rosario Club Old Boys. It was from that team that Messi moved to Barcelona in 2000, at the age of 13. His coach in Rosario suggests that one day he saw a lefty taking the ball and the boy seemed to be like a weaver, with a great shot, a short sprint and a particular method of pulling away. His dribbling was also exceptional. It came as no surprise that Messi is the star of the World Cup 2010.A house in Rosario still bears the evidence of Messi's game. One day the young boy was practicing his penalty shots, playing with friends on the street. He hit the ball and the ball hit the wall of the house. That goal is still painted red in that house, and its owner says proudly that Messi used to practice there before he became a worldwide known player. He also said that the power of his shots made the pictures shake on the walls, so he will never forget about this little boy that was playing and practicing outside his house. Especially, now, he is the huge star of the World Cup 2010.

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Messi was still young when discovered by a man named Salvador Aparicio, who needed one more player to field his team, so he asked if Leo could play. That was the first time that this kid, five years old at the time, much younger than all the rest of the players would wear a soccer jersey and play in a normal football club. No one at that time could have thought that Messi was about to be a key player and star of the World Cup 2010.

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All coaches said that it was impossible to keep Messi on the bench for more than five minutes, because the team always needed him. There were some moments though that he was not asked to play and these were the worst moments for the young player.

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Messi is a player who knows what he wants in the field and he knows how to get it. He also knows that he is not supposed to break, that he is the one to take a step further when needed, taking his squad a step further as well. Messi is also the type of guy who doesn't want to be the star or the sparkle of the team, but he wants to be the player, without whom the team cannot play, keeping a low profile and a calm attitude. This is why he is for everyone who watches soccer, the star of the World Cup 2010.

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Is he the greatest contemporary footballer in the game today? Many might argue that yes, Lionel Messi is the greatest. After all, fans and foes have often drawn lines of comparison between Messi and his hero, the legendary Deigo Maradona. Add to that the ultimate compliment offered up by Maradona himself, who stated Messi would be his "successor", and it's kind of hard not to at least notice that Lionel Messi is one amazing footballer.

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As a striker/winger for Barcelona and a member of the Argentine Senior International Team, Messi made his debut with Barcelona during the 2004/05 Season and broke La Liga's record for being the youngest player to ever score a league goal. The young striker's aggressive play and sheer athleticism powered him to a spot as a first team regular in Barcelona in 2006/07, when he scored 14 goals in only 26 league games. Then, as if to raise the bar for himself, he went on to score 38 goals in Barcelona's incredible 2008/2009 Season.

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As a top scorer in the 2005 FIFA World Youth Championship, he soon became an established player in the Argentine Senior International Team. As part of that squad, Messi became the youngest Argentine player ever to participate in a World Cup match in 2006. Later, in 2008, he was part of the Argentine Olympic squad and was honored with a gold medal for his efforts in the Beijing Games.

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Beloved of fans on the field, he also deserves kudos for his charitable efforts off the field, too. In 2007, Messi establish the Fundacion Leo Messi (Leo Messi Foundation). The charity supports access to both education and health care for children in at risk situations. Likely a response to his own childhood illness, Messi makes sure the foundation supports assistance for Argentine children diagnosed with difficult medical conditions by offering them advanced treatments in Spain and covering their expenses including transportation, hospital stay and rehabilitation. He is partnered with the company Herbalife in this endeavor. In March of this year, Messi became a goodwill ambassador for UNICEF, at least partially due to his personal efforts on behalf of children's rights.

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Lionel Messi's emergence as the world's footballer of the year 2009 was no surprise to so many soccer enthusiasts who have followed the progress of this young soccer icon. This young man came into the limelight during the World Youth Championship (FIFA-20) in the Netherlands in 2005 where he dazzled the world with his dribbling and scoring skills; he eventually emerged the most valuable player of the championship.

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Lionel Messi has improved tremendously. Ever since he led his country Argentina to win the FIFA U-20 championship in 2005, he has added more medals to his coffer, including the Olympics gold medal in 2008, the UEFA champions league trophies in 2006 and 2009, the Spanish league trophies, the Spanish F.A. cup, the world clubs cup, the European footballer of the year 2009, and now the FIFA world footballer of the 2009 award.Still in his twenties, he has age on his side and also has a very good club side where contribution of others would help improve his skills further.

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One word for Messi 'keep your head cool and the sky will be your limit'. He should remember he is a role model who has a lot of influence on children and lovers of the game of football; he should therefore avoid anything capable of tarnishing his reputation on and off the pitch of play.

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This young, talented, amiable, humble and respectable footballer has achieved in a space of four years what so many footballers could not achieve in their entire soccer careers. This soccer maestro has little or nothing more to prove to the soccer world. His award as world footballer of the year has now put him on the same level with soccer heroes like Zinedine Zidane, Ronaldo, Ronaldinho, Rivaldo, Paulo Madini, Canavalho, George Weah, Kaka, etc.

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The year 2009 was certainly the best year in the life of Lionel Messi and remains a year he would always remember because of the achievements he had - league trophy, F.A. Cup, World Clubs Cup, European footballer of the year award and FIFA world footballer of the year award. This is certainly no mean achievement.

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Football history would never be complete without the inclusion of this soccer icon - Lionel Messi. Barcelona FC expects to reap more gains from the investment they made on this young talent. And now that he has helped Argentina to qualify for the world cup in South Africa what shall we expect from him? The world certainly expects nothing less than a dazzling performance.

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Lionel Messi was born in Rosario city on June 24, 1987. He started playing football at the age of five for Grandoli, a club coached by his father. Messi switched to Newell's Old Boys in 1995. At the age of 11, he was diagnosed with a growth hormone deficiency. Every month Messi required treatment for the illness that cost over 500 Pounds. River Plate showed interest in Messi's progress, but did not have enough money to pay for his treatment. FC Barcelona was made aware of Messi talent. After watching him play, Barcelona signed him and offer to pay for the medical bills if he was willing to move to Spain.

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Messi is a player with exceptional quality. He is highly creative, and has the skills to take on defenders with ease. He is a versatile left-footed player who can play either in the middle or on either wing, or even as a centre forward. Messi makes up for the lack of height with his speed and agility. His sudden changes in pace make him a true problem for the defenders. In addition, his accurate powerful shot make him truly unique in free kick and corner situations. He has drawn comparisons to Diego Maradona, and indeed Maradona himself named Messi his "successor".

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In club football, Messi made his debut against Espanyol on October 16, 2004, becoming the third-youngest player ever to play for FC Barcelona and youngest club player who played in La Liga at that that time (a record broken by team mate Bojan Krkic in September 2007). He scored his first senior goal against Albacete Balompié on May 1, 2005. Messi was 17 years, 10 months and 7 days old at that time, becoming the youngest player to ever score in a La Liga game for FC Barcelona until 2007 when Bojan Krkic broke this record.

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Messi won the Under 20 World Cup in Holland with Argentina. He was crowned the leading goalscorer and voted best player in the tournament. Aged 18 years, he had become one of the hottest properties in the world game. Shortly after, he made his first full international appearance in a friendly against Hungary. In 2005, José Pekerman called Messi up to the senior Argentine national team. He made his debut on August 17, 2005 against Hungary. He was sent off in the 63rd minute, just 40 seconds after he came in as a substitute. The referee found Messi to have elbowed defender Vilmos Vanczák, who was tugging Messi's shirt. He left the pitch disappointed and in tears.

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Since then, Lionel Messi has developed into a more complete and mature player. There are still many years left in his career. Everyone is waiting for him to emulate Diego Maradona success by guiding Argentina to win the World Cup again.

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lionel messi top 50 goals

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While many FC Barcelona football tickets are bought by those wanting to see the marvels of Ronaldinho and Eto'o at the Nou Camp, one of the most exciting young players to regularly grace the line up of FC Barcelona is the Argentinean player Lionel Messi.

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While highly regarded in the Nou Camp, his profile has been lower than the two previously mentioned players until now; but perhaps the beginning of the end of his relative low-profile happened last week when he scored an amazing goal in a match against Getafe in the Copa del Rey - the King's Cup.

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The match - in which Barcelona beat Getafe 5-2 - saw two goals from Messi, as well as Xavi, Eto'o and Gudjohnsen, but it is the Messi's first goal in particular that people are talking about nearly a week after the event.

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In an almost move for move reproduction of Maradona's "goal of the century" against England in the 1986 World Cup semi-final - English fans will never forgive Maradona scoring off a handball in the same match, dubbed by Maradona himself as "the hand of God" - Leo Messi received the ball from Xavi, beat a total of five Getafe players and then knocked the ball past the goalkeeper into the net, running a distance of 63 metres in doing so.

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Naturally Messi is being compared with Diego Maradona, to whom he dedicated the goal, and if you watch the two goals side by side the similarities are eerie.

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Although Messi's star is currently shining bright, the future for the young player was at one time looking bleak. Diagnosed with growth hormone deficiency when he was eleven years old, a time when the Argentinean economy was in meltdown, neither his family nor the club that had expressed an interest in him, Club Atletico River Plate, were unable to afford the treatment.

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However, his family jumped at the chance of starting a new life in Spain when Catalan giants FC Barcelona stepped in with an offer that included all medical expenses and he quickly flourished in Barcelona's youth team. Since becoming a first team regular he has become a firm favourite and puts his talent to good use against some of the top teams in the league, including arch-rivals Real Madrid.

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Although the comparison with Maradona unfair at this early stage in his career, providing Lionel Messi can remain motivated and injury free then he could easily join the ranks of the football greats.

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