LIONEL MESSI saw a football club naming a stand after him… even though he never played for that team.
Messi, 38, is considered by many as the greatest player of all time after winning a record eight Ballon d’Or honours throughout his glittering 21-year career.
The star forward’s brilliant legacy was carved out at Barcelona where he spent 17 successful years that saw him winning 10 LaLiga titles, seven Copa del Rey honours and four Champions League trophies.
The Argentina captain didn’t enjoy the same level of success at Paris Saint-Germain where he played for two years after his heartbreaking exit from Barca in 2021.
And now the Inter Miami superstar is enjoying the winter of his career in the MLS where he has fallen off the radar despite a string of impressive performances for David Beckham’s club.
But it was Newell’s Old Boys that gave Messi the ultimate honour by naming one of their stadium’s stands after him.
The Argentine great has history with the club as he joined their academy at the age of eight and spent five years within their youth ranks before moving to Barcelona esteemed La Masia set up.
However, the legendary footballer never picked up a senior appearance with the Argentinean outfit.
Nevertheless, Messi has always been a fan of the club and has repeatedly expressed his support.
Old Boys issued photos of their new stand on social media and added the following caption: “Our home. The house of football history.”
Some fans were left baffled and expressed frustration with the club for honouring a player that never competed for the team at senior level – even if it is someone of Messi’s caliber.
And a section of the fanbase was also angry with the powers that be as they didn’t bother to repaint the bottom part of the stand.
One fan tweeted: “@Grok how many senior appearances has Lionel Messi made for Newells Old Boys?”
Another commented: “I thought it was us messing around, but no, they’re just that clueless.”
A third wrote: “Can you give me the info on the number of official goals scored by Messi?”
This fan said: “How sloppy, they didn’t even paint below!! No wonder Messi didn’t even thank them.”
And that one stated: “I feel second-hand embarrassment.”
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