Revealed: Why Messi refused to sign fan's shirt
Lionel Messi refused to sign a fan’s shirt because it belonged to a rival team to his boyhood club, Newell’s Old Boys.
Messi grew up supporting Newell’s, joining them when he was only six, and left at 13 in order to secure hormone treatment for his slow growth.
However he has often talked about wishing to return home to Argentina to play for Newell’s before he retires.
Speaking to ESPN, Messi said: “I would love to [go back]. “It is something I have kept an eye on because it was my dream as a child.
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“Obviously my life started to change and went another way, but I have no regrets.
“It’s something I have kept an eye on. I want to play in Argentine football and Newell’s, where I grew up.”
His passion for the club led him to refuse to sign a shirt for Rosario Central when approached by a fan after a 1-0 victory over Valladolid.
Rosario Central are fierce rivals of Newell’s and play in a heated derby that regularly sees passions spill over, so it should be no surprise that Messi refused to sign the shirt.
In response, the fan appears to call Messi a ‘pecho frio’ which literally translates as ‘cold chest’ but signifies a lack of passion or emotion.
