With a career spanning more than two decades, Lionel Messi’s impact on football is no longer hypothetical; it can be measured.

From the countless records he has broken to the trophy cabinet that surely overflows at home, his legacy is tangible.

But perhaps nowhere is that legacy more evident than in the players who grew up idolizing him. As Barcelona’s biggest star from his breakthrough under Pep Guardiola in 2008 until his departure in 2021, Messi shaped a generation of Spanish fans and footballers.

Now, he is set to face many of them in the 2026 World Cup final.

The story linking Messi and Lamine Yamal, widely regarded as the Argentine’s heir at Barcelona, is one of the most remarkable in modern football.

A photo of Messi with Yamal as a baby went viral in 2024 after the young player’s father shared it during the European Championship.

It was taken in 2008 during a photoshoot for an annual charity calendar organized by the Catalan newspaper Sport, the FC Barcelona Foundation and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF).

The club and its foundation selected the players and children who would appear in the calendar, which also featured Andrés Iniesta, Thierry Henry, Carles Puyol........

© Buenos Aires Herald