<P> An Argentine international, Messi is his country's all - time leading goalscorer . At youth level, he won the 2005 FIFA World Youth Championship, finishing the tournament with both the Golden Ball and Golden Shoe, and an Olympic gold medal at the 2008 Summer Olympics . His style of play as a diminutive, left - footed dribbler drew comparisons with compatriot Diego Maradona, who declared the teenager his successor . After making his senior debut in August 2005, Messi became the youngest Argentine to play and score in a FIFA World Cup during the 2006 edition, and reached the final of the 2007 Copa América, where he was named young player of the tournament . As the squad's captain from August 2011, he led Argentina to three consecutive finals: the 2014 World Cup, for which he won the Golden Ball, and the 2015 and 2016 Copas América . </P> <P> Lionel Andrés Messi was born on 24 June 1987 in Rosario, the third of four children of Jorge Messi, a steel factory manager, and his wife Celia Cuccittini, who worked in a magnet manufacturing workshop . On his father's side, he is of Italian and Spanish descent, the great - grandson of immigrants from Marche and Catalonia, and on his mother's side, he has primarily Italian ancestry . Growing up in a tight - knit, football - loving family, "Leo" developed a passion for the sport from an early age, playing constantly with his older brothers, Rodrigo and Matías, and his cousins, Maximiliano and Emanuel Biancucchi, both of whom became professional footballers . At the age of four he joined local club Grandoli, where he was coached by his father, though his earliest influence as a player came from his maternal grandmother, Celia, who accompanied him to training and matches . He was greatly affected by her death, shortly before his eleventh birthday; since then, as a devout Catholic, he has celebrated his goals by looking up and pointing to the sky in tribute of his grandmother . </P> <P> A lifelong supporter of Newell's Old Boys, Messi joined the Rosario club when he was six years old . During the six years he played for Newell's, he scored almost 500 goals as a member of "The Machine of' 87", the near - unbeatable youth side named for the year of their birth, and regularly entertained crowds by performing ball tricks during half - time of the first team's home games . However, his future as a professional player was threatened when, at age 10, he was diagnosed with a growth hormone deficiency . As his father's health insurance covered only two years of growth hormone treatment, which cost at least $1,000 per month, Newell's agreed to contribute, but later reneged on their promise . He was scouted by Buenos Aires club River Plate, whose playmaker, Pablo Aimar, he idolised, but they were also unable to pay for his treatment due to the country's economic collapse . </P> <P> As the Messi family had relatives in Catalonia, they sought to arrange a trial with Barcelona in September 2000 . First team director Charly Rexach immediately wanted to sign him, but the board of directors hesitated; at the time it was highly unusual for European clubs to sign foreign players of such a young age . On 14 December, an ultimatum was issued for Barcelona to prove their commitment, and Rexach, with no other paper at hand, offered a contract on a paper napkin . In February 2001, the family relocated to Barcelona, where they moved into an apartment near the club's stadium, Camp Nou . During his first year in Spain, Messi rarely played with the Infantiles due to a transfer conflict with Newell's; as a foreigner, he could only be fielded in friendlies and the Catalan league . Without football, he struggled to integrate into the team; already reserved by nature, he was so quiet that his teammates initially believed he was mute . At home, he suffered from homesickness after his mother moved back to Rosario with his brothers and little sister, María Sol, while he stayed in Barcelona with his father . </P>

Who did lionel messi play for before barcelona