Barcelona's top 10 academy graduates

#1 Lionel Messi

Lionel Messi is arguably the greatest footballer of all time

It couldn’t really be anyone else, could it? Argentine magician Lionel Messi famously moved to Barcelona at the age of 13, when the club’s scouts spotted his immense talents and offered to pay for the growth hormone treatment he needed to develop physically. Almost 20 years later, he’s widely recognised as arguably the greatest player to ever step onto a football field, and is by far the greatest graduate of La Masia.

Messi debuted in Barca’s first team in the 2004-05 season as a 17-year old, and it’s honestly hard to quantify his incredible achievements in the years that have followed. As of the time of writing, the Argentine has appeared 706 times for La Blaugrana and has scored an insane 618 goals – averaging nearly a goal per game – and in his 16 seasons at the Nou Camp, he’s scored more than 50 goals 6 times – with 73 being his personal record in 2011-12.

A striker, playmaker and arguably the greatest dribbler of the ball ever, Messi has won countless numbers of individual trophies – including 6 Ballon d’Or awards – and has also been Europe’s top scorer in 6 seasons. He’s helped Barca to a ridiculous 34 trophies, including 10 La Liga titles and 4 Champions Leagues – and he doesn’t appear to be slowing down even at the age of 32. Simply put, he’s the greatest player in Barcelona’s history.