Meet Murtaza Ahmadi, a five-year old boy from Afghanistan who may very well be soccer star Lionel Messi’s biggest fan.
Ahmadi’s story went viral late last month when photos of his homemade jersey spread across the internet like wildfire. The future-footballer is seen with the biggest smile on his face, kicking a ball around and wearing the Argentinian blue and white stripes, complete with Messi’s number 10 on the back.
Afghanistan Football Federation has confirmed that Messi will meet his 5 year old fan Murtaza Ahmadi at Camp Nou ❤️? pic.twitter.com/WJjnmVOPbl
— Neymar Jr. (@NeyMarvellous) January 31, 2016
Because his parents couldn’t get him a real one, Ahmadi’s brother helped him create his jersey out of plastic bags, and write the number 10 on the back. Murtaza’s father, Arif told CNN “He kept crying for days asking for the shirt until his brother Hamayon helped him make one from the plastic bag to make him happy.”
Once his photos started circulating, Barcelona team representatives began spreading the word online to try and track down the boy, located in the region of Jaghori. While initially, word was that they’d be surprising Ahmadi with an official jersey, sources have confirmed that Messi himself is planning on meeting the future-footballer.
We got DM from Leo's team. They want to know who this kid is so that Leo can arrange something for him. RT & spread https://t.co/MylJyDOpsu
— Leo Messi (@messi10stats) January 18, 2016
According to Syed Ali Kazemi of the Afghan Football Federation, “The management of the Afghan Football Federation has received emails from Lionel Messi and FC Barcelona regarding the meeting.”
No word yet on where the meeting will take place, but we can probably assume it’ll be one of the most memroable moments in the boy’s childhood.