Lionel messi biography 2011 hyundai sonata

Messi signed a new contract with Barcelona as a senior team player on his 18th birthday. The contract was set to expire in , with a buyout clause of million euros. However, Messi opted to stay. In September of that season, his contract was updated and was set to expire in During the — season, at the age of 19, Messi became one of the best players in the world.

Following the departure of Ronaldinho, Messi was given the no. That season Messi had a successful campaign, winning the second consecutive La Liga title. Thanks to his wonderful performance, Messi created a reputation for himself as a creator no. Due to his numerous achievements, Messi was regarded as one of the best in the history of the game. In the — season, Messi signed a new contract with Barcelona which will see him at Camp Nou until Barcelona was heavily criticized for their dismal performance which shows their dependence on the Argentine star.

His campaign that season was the worst he had in five years. He signed a new contract with Barcelona which saw his salary increase from 20 million euros to 36 million euros. Under the leadership of new coach, Luis Enrique. He has something different than any other player in the world. Messi embarked on an all-out assault on the record books in By the end of the year, Messi had accumulated an astounding 91 goals in club and international play, eclipsing the 85 netted in a single calendar year by Gerd Muller in In , the soccer great came back to earth somewhat due to the persistence of hamstring injuries, but he regained his record-breaking form by becoming the all-time leading scorer in La Liga and Champions League play in late The year-old inked a two-year contract with the French club.

Messi made his debut for the club on August 29, , and scored his first goal that September. PSG won two Ligue 1 titles with Messi but twice failed to advance beyond the round of 16 in the Champions League finals. Although his contract allowed for an optional third year at PSG, the team announced it would release Messi as a free agent when the deal expired on June 30, Earlier in the year, the club suspended and fined Messi after he visited Saudi Arabia on an unauthorized trip.

In total, he started in 72 games, notching 32 goals and 34 assists. Messi later told Time he strongly considered joining a Saudi Arabian team before deciding on Inter Miami. A little over a month later, on July 16, the team officially welcomed him on a 2.

Lionel messi biography 2011 hyundai sonata

Messi wound up scoring 11 goals in 14 games overall. However, with Messi injured late in the season, Inter Miami went winless in seven straight and failed to qualify for the playoffs. Messi has directly boosted revenue for the team, as well. Attendance at home games spiked 40 percent , the most in the MLS. Even with the price jump, Inter Miami announced season tickets sold out at the end of November, two months out of the start of the preseason.

In Messi's first game back on 1 September, he scored in a 1—0 home win over Uruguay in a World Cup qualifier. He was consequently suspended for four international games on 28 March , and also fined CHF 10, Argentina's place in the next World Cup was in jeopardy going into their final qualifying match. Furthermore, Messi scored more than a third of Argentina's 19 goals throughout the campaign, whereas no other teammate scored more than 2 goals.

Even having the best player in the world was not capable of creating a competitive team. All the decline of recent times was hidden by this unrivalled genius [Messi]". Following on from their poor qualification campaign, expectations were not high going into the World Cup in Russia, with the team, without an injured Messi, losing 6—1 to Spain in March In the team's opening group match against Iceland on 16 June, Messi missed a potential match-winning penalty in an eventual 1—1 draw.

Post-match the Argentina coach Jorge Sampaoli spoke of the lack of quality in the team surrounding Messi, saying "we quite simply couldn't pass to him to help him generate the situations he is used to. We worked to give him the ball but the opponent also worked hard to prevent him from getting the ball. We lost that battle". In Argentina's final group match against Nigeria at the Krestovsky Stadium , Saint Petersburg on 26 June, Messi scored the opening goal in an eventual 2—1 victory, becoming the third Argentine after Diego Maradona and Gabriel Batistuta to score in three different World Cups; he also became the first player to score in the World Cup in his teens, twenties, and his thirties.

The tournament ended with Messi only having one goal and two assists throughout. Following the World Cup exit, Messi stated that he would not participate in Argentina's friendlies against Guatemala and Colombia in September, and commented that it would be unlikely that he would represent his nation for the remainder of the calendar year. Messi's absence from the national team and his continued failure to win a title with Argentina prompted speculation in the media that Messi might retire from international football once again.

A conversation with his idol Pablo Aimar and new Argentina manager Lionel Scaloni convinced Messi to return to the national team. On 3 July, Messi assisted twice and scored from a free-kick in a 3—0 win over Ecuador in the quarter-final of the competition's knockout rounds. Argentina would draw 0—0 against Brazil that match on 16 November, but it would be enough to secure a spot in the World Cup with five matches remaining in the qualifiers.

Messi played the entire match, assisting twice in a 3—0 victory. This secured Messi's second trophy for Argentina at the senior level, and he was named player of the match. It would be considered one of the biggest upsets of the tournament, and put Argentina on the brink of elimination after only one game in the World Cup. Messi became the first player to register an assist at five World Cup tournaments, and became both the youngest and oldest player to score and assist in a single World Cup game.

Argentina won 4—3 in the penalty shootout, with Messi scoring the first penalty. He scored Argentina's opening goal with a penalty, becoming in the process the first player since the Round of 16 was introduced in to score a goal in every round of a single World Cup edition, and the first player to score or assist in 14 different World Cup matches.

Tied 3—3 after extra time, the match went to a penalty shootout. Messi scored Argentina's first goal in the shootout, with Argentina eventually winning 4—2, ending the nation's year wait for the trophy. Messi received the Golden Ball for player of the tournament, becoming the first player to win it twice. The tournament has been considered exceptionally poetic as the capstone of his career, with the win fulfilling for some commentators a previously unmet criterion to be regarded as the greatest player of all time.

Following the game, Messi confirmed that he had no plans to retire from the national team, saying "I want to continue playing as a champion". The government declared it a national holiday to celebrate the win, and a parade was planned later that day. However, the parade was unable to proceed as planned; originally meant to an eight-hour journey that would end at the Obelisco de Buenos Aires , the parade route was blocked due to the sheer volume of people in attendance, which the media estimated to be 4 million.

The players were then transferred from their parade bus to a helicopter, where they were able to complete their route. Messi and the national team returned to the pitch as world champions three months after the final for two friendlies in Argentina. These matches were scheduled to allow the team to celebrate their World Cup victory with their fans and compatriots.

This also marked his th senior career goal for club and country. Scaloni followed by expressing his gratitude to the team. All of the members of the Argentina team were then joined by their families on the pitch and given replica World Cup trophies that they lifted in celebration. The players continued the festivities by waving to fans in the stands as fireworks were set off in the sky.

The first of his three goals saw him reach international goals, making Messi the third player in history to reach the milestone, and the first South American. As a result, Messi would be rested in the next match against Peru on 29 June, citing discomfort in his hamstring. On 4 July, in the quarter-final against Ecuador, following a 1—1 draw after 90 minutes, Messi missed his side's first penalty in the ensuing shootout, but Argentina advanced following a 4—2 victory.

Contents move to sidebar hide. Article Talk. Read Edit View history. Tools Tools. Download as PDF Printable version. In other projects. Wikidata item. Lionel Messi at Barcelona left , where he spent a majority of his club career, and with Argentina right , who he represents internationally. Club career [ edit ]. Barcelona [ edit ].

See also: —09 FC Barcelona season. See also: —10 FC Barcelona season. See also: —11 FC Barcelona season. See also: —12 FC Barcelona season. See also: —14 FC Barcelona season. See also: —15 FC Barcelona season. See also: —16 FC Barcelona season. See also: —17 FC Barcelona season. See also: —18 FC Barcelona season. See also: —19 FC Barcelona season.

See also: —20 FC Barcelona season. August Desire to leave Barcelona [ edit ]. See also: —21 FC Barcelona season. Success for Messi in the World Cup would be the last test of greatness. Messi is widely regarded as one of the most exciting players of the modern age — in fact, any age. He has a peerless ability to dribble and take on opponents. Maradona has described his ball control as supremely good.

I know that above all it is my job and that I should approach it in another way, but one must not lose sight of the fact that football is a game. It is imperative one plays to amuse oneself, to be happy. That is what children do and I do the same thing. The fourth award that I have had is just too great for words. Messi has often been compared to prolific Real Madrid goalscorer Christiano Ronaldo, but both have been keen to downplay the rivalry.

He has his game and I have mine. I also play in a big club like him. We are different in every aspect. But right now, he is the best. By June , he has scored goals in official matches for Barcelona FC. Messi has frequently been the target of other football clubs with big transfer budgets, but he has remained loyal to Barcelona FC. He is one of the highest paid footballers in the world.

This made him the highest paid sports star — according to Forbes. By the standards of modern football, Messi has a relatively private and modest lifestyle. He makes efforts to keep links to his hometown of Rosario. He has an Argentinian girlfriend Antonella Roccuzzo, and they have two children.