What? Lionel Messi could have ended up at Real Madrid

Lionel Messi has had an extraordinary career in Spain, spending many years at Barcelona, where he became a true legend. However, things could have turned out very differently.

Details: Messi’s first agent, Horacio Gaggioli, revealed that Real Madrid was interested in the Argentine when he was young.

Quote: "Real showed interest in him when he was 16-17 years old. But Leo never wanted to leave Barcelona," said the agent.

Gaggioli also mentioned that Arsenal had expressed interest in the Argentine forward, but Messi remained steadfast in his decision to stay at Barcelona.

Reminder: Messi holds the record for the most goals scored for both Argentina and Barcelona. He is the 2022 World Cup champion, 2014 World Cup runner-up, and an eight-time Ballon d'Or winner.

However, this year, for the first time since 2003, both Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo were excluded from the final shortlist for the Ballon d'Or.