The Origin of a Star

Lionel Messi was born on 24 June 1987 in Rosario, Argentina. He is the son of Mr. Jorge Horacio Messi, a factory worker, and Celia María Cuccittini, a parttime cleaner. His family originates from the Italian city of Ancona, where his grandfather, Angelo Messi, immigrated from to Argentina in 1883. Lionel has two older brothers: Rodrigo and Matías and also a sister; her name is Maria Sol.

At the age of five Lionel started playing football for Grandoli, a football club in Argentina. His father, Jorge, was the coach of that club. He has two cousins in football: Maxi and Emanuel Biancucchi; they are good footballers too. At the age of 11, Lionel suffered from a growth hormone deficiency. Primera Division club River Plate showed interest in Lionel’s progress, but did not have enough money to pay for his treatment, as it cost $900 a month. Carles Rexach, the sporting director of F.C.B was fully aware of his talent and as Lionel had relatives in Leida, Catalonia, he and his father were able to arrange a trial. Barcelona signed him after watching his skills in football, offering to pay for the medical bills if he was willing to move to Spain. His family moved to Europe and he started in the F.C.B club’s youth teams. Now, Lionel is the most famous youngest footballer in the world having won four Golden Balls.