Wow! Messi is actually not Argentine! So who is he?
A new and unexpected chapter has emerged in the story of Lionel Messi.
Details: A three-year investigation by Italian researcher Fiorenzo Santini revealed that Lionel Messi’s maternal family spent some time living in Brazil. The findings were published by Globo.
According to newly uncovered documents, the footballer’s great-great-grandfather on his mother’s side, Ranieri Cocchettini, together with his wife Rosa Riccetti and their children, left Italy and arrived in the Brazilian port city of Santos on September 20, 1899.
The family settled in the state of São Paulo, where Ranieri worked on a coffee plantation. In January 1904, Messi’s great-grandfather Arderigo was born in Ribeirão Preto. When the family registered his documents, his name was changed to Federico, and the surname Cocchettini was altered to Cuccittini—the very version Lionel Messi would later inherit.
In September 1905, the family relocated to Argentina and settled in the Rosario area. Researchers found no evidence that any of Messi’s relatives remained in Brazil after the move.
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Steven Perez
Dailysports's expert
