Geniuses are born. If you have any doubts about that particular cliche, do have a gander at the clip below.
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Before he joined FC Barcelona – back when football was played by normal people – no one would have raised an eyebrow if you had uttered the name, Lionel Messi.
It's not the same these days, of course, but back in the day when the 10-year old from Newell's Old Boys – suffering from a debilitating growth hormone deficiency – scrawled his signature on a tissue in a cafe in Barcelona to make him a member of that famous school of theirs La Masia, no one knew him.
Very soon, though, keen observers of the youth systems of the Top European Clubs had only one name on their lips... even as a kid, he was shorter than everyone else in his age group, and a million miles ahead of them in terms of pure talent. Recently Barcelona released the video – embedded above – which shows the Messi that we all love and know – shrugging bigger defenders away, waltzing past them with the ball at his feet, and finishing with trademark cheeky ruthlessness. It’s amazing how he can still leave us all awestruck.
Also, Read – Sportskeeda Football Awards 2016: Forward of the Year
He does the kind of things that you and I dream of doing as kids in the schoolyard. The video is a lovely throwback to Messi's development at La Masia. At one point of time in the video, he says -
“I've scored five goals, and I hope to score a lot more”
Certainly lived up to his words, eh?
While his talent was natural, it was the hard work and commitment to improvement that he showed at La Masia – and throughout his Senior career – that has made Messi arguably the greatest footballer of our times.
