Lionel Messi reveals shock 'childhood dream' that was scotched by Barcelona debut

Signed on 14 December 2000, the napkin has become one of the most iconic artefacts in football. The blue-ink message, hastily scribbled by Barça sporting director Carles Rexach, carried a personal commitment to sign a 13-year-old Messi "regardless of any dissenting opinions." Alongside Rexach’s name were those of transfer advisor Josep Minguella and agent Horacio Gaggioli, men who had championed Messi’s potential when others hesitated. The napkin emerged amid growing anxiety from the Messi family. After his trial, weeks drifted by with little communication from Barca. As Christmas approached in 2000, Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid hovered as possible alternatives. Messi’s father, Jorge, feared the moment would pass. Rexach, aware the club were close to losing a generational talent, invited Jorge Messi to lunch, and, lacking an official document, wrote the pledge on the only material available. Messi was officially signed a month later, and history took its course.

Translated into English, it reads: "In Barcelona, on 14 December 2000 and in the presence of Messrs Minguella and Horacio, Carles Rexach, FC Barcelona's sporting director, hereby agrees, under his responsibility and regardless of any dissenting opinions, to sign the player Lionel Messi, provided that we keep to the amounts agreed upon."

Messi’s Barcelona debut followed three years later, on 16 November 2003, in a friendly against Porto. Frank Rijkaard introduced the 16-year-old in the 71st minute. Even then, whispers circled La Masia suggesting that the teenager from Rosario possessed a talent beyond comparison, though few could predict the scale of what would unfold. His competitive first-team bow came the following year on 16 October, in a La Liga fixture against Espanyol. At 17 years, three months and 22 days, he became Barcelona’s youngest-ever representative in official competition. The dream of playing for Newell’s faded in that moment, but a new reality began.

In an interview with ESPN, Messi has now said: "I always say that my childhood dream was to play for Newell's first team. I'd go to the stadium, I played there, and I dreamed of becoming a professional in Primera. Then my life changed completely because I left at 13, debuted for Barcelona, and everything that happened afterward. It's something I never would've imagined, not even in my best dreams. I lived things much bigger than anything I could have dreamed of."

Messi would go on to score 672 goals in 778 games for Barcelona, win 10 La Liga titles, lift four Champions Leagues, and establish an era-defining legacy before leaving for Paris Saint-Germain in 2021. Hence, despite the romanticism attached to a homecoming, Messi never managed to fulfil that childhood wish. When he left PSG, the option was emotionally appealing but professionally unworkable as Inter Miami ultimately offered the stability and vision that Newell’s could not. Now 38 and still guiding Argentina as they prepare to defend their World Cup crown, Messi accepts that the story of his early years remains unfinished. Whereas the same napkin was sold for an astonishing £762,400 at auction, far surpassing its £300,000 starting price.

The 2026 World Cup, spread across the United States, Canada and Mexico, looms large. Argentina, the reigning champions, are among the favourites once more and will learn their group-stage opponents when Friday’s draw takes place. For Messi, the tournament represents an opportunity to win back-to-back World Cups as captain. His Newell’s dream may remain untouched, but everything else, the records, the glory, has exceeded his dreams.