Lionel Messi is undoubtedly one of the greatest soccer players to step foot on a soccer pitch. Starting his youth career with the Argentine outfit Newell’s Old Boys as an eight-year-old, he has seen it all. He has famously won countless individual trophies and club trophies with Barcelona. Nowadays he is playing for the French Giants PSG.
Messi is also looking for his first-ever World Cup glory with Argentina in Qatar World Cup 2022. He has scored 4 times already in this World Cup, hoping to win their upcoming match against Croatia for a place in the final. Alongside goalscoring he has incredibly gifted vision and playmaking traits under his sleeves, often referring to him as an ‘Alien’.
Why Fans believe Lionel Messi is Autistic
Politician and former footballer Romario in 2013 published an article saying Lionel Messi suffered from an Asperger condition. Asperger is a mental condition that has general symptoms like an individual’s inability to socialize and extreme shyness. He was also reported to be texting in a very important situation rather than talking to the person. The reason behind it was believed to avoid the face-to-face conversation with the person in question.
A YouTube channel named Soccer Stories also published a video comparing Lionel Messi’s mental attributes to Albert Einstein’s. The man behind the story Roberto Armando made the comparison for positive prospects only. Although Romario referred to the Soccer Stories video, he also addressed Armando as foolish to call Messi autistic.
Another similar story from the famous El Paris reported that Messi in childhood came on the pitch with a spoon in his mouth. He didn’t remove it till the end of the session and it is another similarity to be found in autism.
Despite all the media stories and videos in the past, there is no confirmed report about Lionel Messi having either Asperger or autism.
Soccer Stars Who is Autistic
Autism is a mental condition and a sport like soccer seems unplayable with that. Lionel Messi however, has botched all those norms and made a massive name for himself. Former Manchester United footballer John O’kane is the only other footballer to have this condition. He has received proper treatment following his early retirement. Nowadays he helps raise awareness for the condition.