The house, the little pitch and the memories of Messi’s old neighbourhood | OneFootball

By Federico Gullo

525 Lavalleja. Rosario, Santa Fe Province. Thank God, in the Argentine Republic. That specific place saw the birth of Lionel Andrés Messi, captain of the Argentina National Team and the greatest footballer in history.

He was born a little over 39 years ago, on June 24, 1987, 367 days after the 2-1 win over England in the quarterfinals of the 1986 World Cup in Mexico. A result that was repeated this Wednesday, against the same rival but in the semifinals of the 2026 World Cup in the United States, Mexico, and Canada. And, like Maradona 40 years earlier, with a hugely influential Messi providing two assists.

While I was taking some pictures of his first home, a man rode by with his son on a bicycle, both wearing Leones de Rosario jerseys, the club founded by the Messi family. “I grew up with Leo,” Pablo said before getting off to chat with TyCSports.com. Of course, the murals surrounding his home are not of Messi. They are of ‘Leo’. “I went to elementary and high school with Rodrigo (Leo’s older brother), and I’m friends with Matías (the middle one); I work at Leones because of him,” he said.

Just a few meters away is La Bajada, a corner with a little football pitch where the No. 10 was already beginning to show what he was capable of. “I didn’t think he would become this much, but I did think he’d be one of the best,” he said. “We were 15, he was seven, and we used to cheat in pan y queso to pick Leo,” he recalled with a laugh. Although his skill could sometimes be frustrating: “That thing where they hit him and he keeps going, he had it even as a little kid. They’d lift him into the air and, while he was falling, he was already taking the ball off you again. You wanted to kick him again, haha.”

Pablo got back on his bicycle with his son and went on his way. Everything is still the same: Messi is still ‘Leo’. He is still Jorge and Celia María’s son. He is still Rodrigo, Matías, and María Sol’s brother.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇪🇸 here.