Featured Image Credit: Alamy & Instaram/franranieri04
Topics: Lionel Messi, Argentina, Paris Saint-Germain, Inter Miami, MLS, Football
Rory O'Callaghan
Topics: Lionel Messi, Argentina, Paris Saint-Germain, Inter Miami, MLS, Football
Inter Miami goalkeeper Francisco Ranieri has got Lionel Messi's autograph tattooed on his arm after fulfilling a lifelong dream of meeting the Argentina star in the flesh.
Seven-time Ballon d'Or winner Messi and the rest of the Argentina squad were in Florida this month to take on Honduras in an international friendly at the Hard Rock Stadium.
Both teams used Inter's training centre to prepare for the match, which ended in a 3-0 win for Argentina - with Messi scoring twice.
In the days after the game, Messi revisited the training ground to meet and train with some of Inter's players – including his former international teammate Gonzalo Higuain, who now plays for the MLS side.
Among those to meet Messi was Inter's Argentine goalkeeper Ranieri, who asked the Paris Saint-Germain star to sign his arm.
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Messi sportingly agreed and Ranieri wasted no time in making it permanent, getting a tattoo of the signature inked the following day.
Posted a picture of his new tattoo on Instagram, Ranieri wrote: "The best day ever. I fulfilled a dream yesterday. Shared the pitch with the players I admire, with my national team.
"Met my idol, the best player ever, an incredible person on and off the pitch, my role model! The excitement to see you and see that you agreed to sign my arm is indescribable.
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"Leo you fulfilled a dream and every day I look at my arm I will remember the excitement I felt when I met you.
"I can't put into words how great you are! So much sacrifice and so many things left aside, to live dreams like the one I got to live yesterday.
"The opportunities this sport is giving me! Now more than ever, let's continue with everything!"
Argentina next face Jamaica in another friendly at the Red Bull Arena in New Jersey on Tuesday.
It is their penultimate match ahead of the World Cup in Qatar, with another friendly against the UAE on November 16 their final warm-up game before the tournament begins on November 20.
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Argentina are one of the favourites to go all the way in Qatar this winter. They face Saudi Arabia in their opening match on November 22 before games against Mexico (November 26) and Poland (November 30).
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