5 Weird Facts About Lionel Messi To Surprise You

The best football player in the world celebrates his 33rd birthday today. On this occasion, we collected 5 interesting and somewhat weird facts about Lionel Messi you have definitely never heard about. Learn what the GOAT is known for except for his exceptional talent and numerous records.

Leo Messi is 33. One of the best footballers on the planet was born on June 24, 1987, in a third-biggest city in Argentina. Almost half of his life has been spent in FC Barcelona, while Messi’s relationship with football lasts even longer. During his career, Leo set numerous records and won lots of championships, but interesting facts about him don’t end here.

To honor the GOAT, we have found the most intriguing information about his personality, private life, and football experience even fans don’t know about. We will not focus on such common facts as the record number of goals or 6 Ballon d’Or awards as everyone knows about them. Let’s see what this humble player can surprise us with!

Don’t also forget to bet on Barcelona to win La Liga this year. Use online sportsbooks in Spain to support Messi’s club of life. 

Weird facts about Lionel Messi: he doesn’t speak English

One of the most unbelievable facts about Leo Messi touches upon… English. Actually, it is about his knowledge of this language which is off. Yes, Messi doesn’t speak English at all despite being a world-famous player. If you watch any video or interview with Leo, you will never see him speaking lingua franca. How did it happen?

The reason why Messi is a Spanish-speaker only lies in his background. Spanish is de-facto the most widespread language in Argentina, where Messi was born and raised. Then, the player moved to Spain where he didn’t need to know the foreign language too. Basically, there is no necessity for Leo to learn English as he perfectly communicated in Spanish with team fellows both in Barcelona and the national team, while official ceremonies like Ballon d’Or provide a translator. 

All in all, it doesn’t prevent Leo from staying at the top. He is even the second most popular on Instagram among footballers despite the fact that all his posts are written in Spanish and only then translated to English.

A special term appeared thanks to Messi

Messi’s greatness has been officially proven by the Santillana dictionary. In 2013, it added a special Spanish term – inmessionante – devoted to Lionel and his football achievements. The English translation of this word offers two definitions:

1. The perfect way to play football; an unlimited ability to improve oneself;
2. Describes the best football player of all time.

This is another reason to call Messi the GOAT, although there is one more candidate for this title. Everyone knows that Ronaldo and Messi have one of the biggest rivalries in football, but now it is Cristiano’s turn to deserve a right to have a common name.

Leo Messi and his childhood diagnosis

Do you want to learn more weird facts about Lionel Messi? Only hardcore fans know this side of his life. At the age of 11, the future footballer was made the growth hormone deficiency diagnosis. It meant that the boy wouldn’t have ever grown at a normal rate. Therefore, his parents took him to Barcelona to treat Leo in Europe as they couldn’t afford the payments in Argentina. Messi joined the youth football academy in Spain which covered all the costs. Despite the treatment being long-lasting and successful, Messi is still one of the smallest players in the world – his height is 1.7 m. Just for comparison, Ronaldo’s height is almost 1.9 m, Mbappe’s – 1.78 m, and Salah is 1.75 m tall.

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Messi married the love of his life 

Weird facts about Lionel Messi touch upon his private life as well. While most players change girls like socks, Messi stands out from the crowd. The footballer has been dating only one woman throughout his entire career. Obviously, nobody knows about his pre-football love interests, but staying faithful to a partner being the number-one player in the world is worth admiration.

Leo Messi started dating Antonela Roccuzzo in 2008 – four years after joining Barcelona. He has known Antonela as a cousin of his friend since 5 years old. According to rumors, Messi has always been in love with the Argentinian model – that’s why he was never seen with other women. He married Antonela in 2017 after she gave birth to two sons: Thiago in 2012 and Mateo in 2015. One year after marriage, another son Ciro was born.

Two movies uncover weird facts about Lionel Messi

Like some football players, music stars and other celebrities, Messi has been referenced to in films. Lionel sticks out even here: he has not one but two self-titled movies. One of them is a documentary, while the other is a drama film. By the way, betting on films and film awards is available at online gambling sites in Spain.

Messi (2014 film) is the first movie devoted to the greatest player of the 21st century. It is a 93-minute documentary directed by Spanish filmmaker Alejandro De la Iglesia Mendoza. The movie focuses on Messi’s life from childhood years to becoming #1 in Barcelona. Messi premiered at the Venice Film Festival and got positive critic reviews.

The other same-name film doesn’t follow Messi directly, though it refers to him even via the title. Messi was directed by Riingo Banerjee, who calls it a reference to Leo but not his biography. It is a drama film about a young talented footballer who plays in a Messi jersey and dreams of becoming a great player. The film premiered in India in 2017.

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