Before coming to light at FC Barcelona, Lionel Messi was visibly close to joining Getafe, in the suburbs of Madrid, as club president Angel Torres tells us.
Pep Guardiola on the bench and Lionel Messi in number 10. Getafe didn’t come far from having this legendary duo! As the club from the suburbs of Madrid faces Barça in Catalonia on Saturday (4:15 p.m.), president Angel Torres talks about how he missed the Catalan coach as well as “La Pulga”.
“We met one morning in a VIP lounge at the airport, but everything happened very quickly, Barça fired Rijkaard (in 2008) and, instead of Laudrup, they chose Guardiola. He was ready to come to Getafe “, says the boss of “Geta” about the current coach of Manchester City.
Before moving on to Messi: “I also asked Messi to Laporta (president from 2003). I was with Laporta and Zubizarreta and they told me that Rijkaard was going to give him minutes, but we were close.”. Getafe would likely have welcomed the Rosario native on a season-long loan deal, with the diminutive left-hander already a huge La Masia sensation.
The birth of a legend
Messi has therefore not been far from freelancing in the capital. Probably before 2005. Number 30 in the back, the native of Rosario played 25 matches in all competitions (for eight goals), during the 2005-2006 season, but without playing in the Champions League final won against Arsenal at the Stadium from France, due to a muscle injury.
Messi confirmed his talent during the following two years under Rijkaard before becoming a global idol in Pep Guardiola’s first season (38 goals in 51 matches). For two Spanish championship titles, two Champions League crowns and as many in the Club World Cup in the company of the strategist.
