Lionel Messi revealed the reason he refuses to speak English.
Eight-time Ballon d’Or winner Messi is perhaps the most famous figure in the English-speaking world to have barely spoken the language publicly.
However. having spent the past year with MLS side Inter Miami, the 36-year-old is likely to have put his English skills to the test.
He even spoke a couple of words in a promotional video for the latest Bad Boys film starring Will Smith.
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In a recent interview, however, the former Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain icon revealed that while his grasp of English is better than he is often given credit for, he is embarrassed to speak it.
Speaking to Abitare, he said: “I understand everything, or almost everything in English. But out of embarrassment I don't speak - but I think I can actually.”
Messi’s Inter Miami colleague Julian Gressel has previously revealed that the Argentina superstar is good enough at English to make jokes with his teammates on the pitch.
US international Gressel said: “Messi doesn't really ever speak to me much and if he did, then it was a little bit in Spanish always.
“I understand most of it in Spanish. He came over to me and said something in English.
“That was the first time he'd spoken to me in English, during the game. He was covering his mouth like he always does. Then after - this is the funny part about it - he goes, 'English pretty good, no?'”
Messi is currently on Argentina duty, looking to successfully defend their Copa America title in the US. He will then return to Chase Stadium to help Inter Miami in their quest for the MLS Cup.
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Topics: Lionel Messi, Inter Miami, Barcelona, Paris Saint-Germain, Copa America, MLS
Chris Byfield