It's a special day for Lionel Messi today as he celebrates his 30th birthday.
The five-time Ballon d'Or winner has scored a staggering 565 goals in 701 games for club and country and viewed as the greatest footballer ever to grace the game by many.
And so to celebrate the big milestone for the footballing phenomenon, we've decided to look back at his first ever goal scored for Barcelona.
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Check it out here:
Credit: FC Barcelona
The magical moment took place on Tuesday 20th July 2004 in a 6-0 friendly win over against Palamos.
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At the time Messi was just 17 but took no time adapting to first-team football if this fine goal is anything to go by; his running style was the same, he was still terrorising defenders and finding the finishing touch.
The Argentine picked up the loose ball in the opposition half, jinked inside and completely wrong-footed the goalkeeper with his left-footed strike.
Barcelona posted the clip back in November but it's definitely worth revisiting.
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Image: PA
Messi would then go on to score his first competitive goal at the end of the 2004/05 season in a home game against Albacete at the Nou Camp. Having already had a goal incorrectly disallowed for offside minutes earlier, the very same combination paid dividends as Messi again latched onto a perfectly weighted pass from Ronaldinho and delicately chipped the onrushing goalkeeper.
Credit: YouTube/RaheemComps
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The rest is history. Happy 30th Lionel. Here's to many more mazy runs, spectacular strikes and football wizardry.
Featured Image Credit:Topics: FC Barcelona, Football, Lionel Messi, Ballon d'Or
