Lionel Messi does not need a formal introduction for the entire world acknowledges him as the undisputed football legend. Born in the region of Rosario, Argentina on 24th June 1987, Lionel Andres Messi showed great enthusiasm for the game in his early stages. At a minor age of 5, Messi was elected for a local youth club, which was coached by his father – Jorge Horacio Messi. Soon he joined the Newell Old Boy Club where his real talent was perceived as he helped the club win all the matches in the coming four years except for only one. Owing to his dedication for football and the capability to strike the ball hard, Messi came to be known locally as The Machine of 1987.
At the age of 11, Lionel Messi was diagnosed with a disease, which caused deficiency of growth hormone in his body. It was a difficult time for the player along with his family as no one turned to fun the young talent's treatment, which costed $900 per month. But soon a wonder happened when the sports director of FC Barcelona heard about Messi's condition and offered help. The club helped in covering all the expenses of Messi's treatment and even signed him for its youth academy. This was the beginning of the golden period of Lionel Messi and soon he was entered into the big league of UEFA championship by the club. Since 2004, Messi has been playing professionally for FC Barcelona and till date has scored over 240 goals for the club. He also represents the Argentina National Football Team as a forward player.
This road to success came with ample hard work and soon resulted him with few of the most prestigious awards from around the world. FIFA Player of The Year, World Soccer Player of The Year (2009, 2011, 2013), European Golden Shoe (2010, 2012, 2013) and FIFA Club World Cup Golden Ball (2009, 2011) are a few worth mentioning. Lionel Messi is among the richest footballer of all time and has an annual salary of a whopping $65 Million. Interestingly, the athlete spends most of this amount on charity work and is known as a social reformer in the nation of Argentina. However, such a big amount has also presented the athlete with few luxuries, among which are his automobiles. His car collection is mind-boggling and includes a Ferrari F430 Spider, Maserati GTS, Dodge Charger SRT8, Audi Q7, Audi R8 Spyder, Lexus 4X4, Toyota Prius and a Maserati GT MC Stadale.
In the present season of World Cup Football 2014, Lionel Messi is shedding heaps of sweat to make his team win the championship. During the team's first match against Bosnia and Herzegovina, Messi scored 1 out of the 2 goals to help Argentina end the game on a 2-1 figure. The upcoming games against Iran and Nigeria are going to be crucial for Argentina to secure a berth in the league matches. Billions of Messi's fan are hoping the star to revive his magic on the field and help the team cruise through the finals. It will be surely compelling to see how the rivals react to Messi's strategies, which are certainly hard to tackle.
