Messi recalls photo with baby Yamal before World Cup final
The 2007 Barcelona charity calendar photo paired Messi with Yamal, who is now his opponent in the final in New York.
Lionel Messi recalled a 2007 photo showing him bathing baby Lamine Yamal, two days before Argentina face Spanyol in the World Cup final on Sunday (19/7) in New York. The Argentina captain called the image “extraordinary” because the baby from the Barcelona and Unicef charity calendar session is now his opponent on football’s biggest stage. Messi said Yamal has already become one of the best players in the world at 19. The photo was taken when Messi was just beginning his senior career at Barcelona, while Yamal was still a baby. The image resurfaced during Euro 2024 after Yamal’s father, Mounir Nasraoui, shared it publicly.