Argentina renames its training centre after Lionel Messi

The Argentine Football Association (AFA) has decided to honour quite possibly the best footballer in history, Lionel Messi, by renaming the Argentine national team’s training centre. While it’s not a statue like the one of Zlatan Ibrahimovic in Malmö, Sweden, it’s still a huge tribute.

Lionel Messi was last month named FIFA’s best player of the past year. Mainly thanks to Argentina’s World Cup win, where Messi was a key cog in coach Lionel Scaloni’s successful machine.

Now he has been honoured with another reward for his impressive performances in the national jersey, with the renaming of the Argentine team’s training centre, which lies 40 minutes from Buenos Aires, from Casa de Ezeiza to Lionel Andres Messi.

The unveiling of the plaque bearing the name ‘Messi’ was attended by the coach Scaloni and the president of the Argentine Football Federation, Claudio Tapia, in addition to the footballer himself.

“Today is a historic day, here in our Casa de Ezeiza, which today will be renamed Lionel Andrés Messi, in honour of the best player in the world,” Tapia wrote on his Twitter account.

“This place is something sensational. Even in the worst moments, of which I’ve had several, I could come here and forget everything. I could come here and feel happy and I still feel that feeling. The fact that it will be named after me is something very nice,” said a delighted Messi.

Messi, who scored his 800th career goal against Panama on Thursday, will be seen in action again on Tuesday in a friendly against Curacao.

For now, the Argentine is making amends with the national team after his PSG was already eliminated in the Champions League eighth round when they fell short to Bayern Munich.

Sources