A few days ago, the Internet started going nuts searching for a young boy wearing a DIY Messi jersey made from a plastic bag. It’s an image that struck a chord with many – a powerful picture that portrays fútbol’s profound impact and capacity to lift us up with innocent imagination into the worlds of our favorite futbolistas.
According to BBC Trending, the boy’s mystery identity might be solved; Azim Ahmadi, an Afghan living in Australia, posted photos of his five-year-old nephew Murtaza Ahmadi, claiming him to be the mystery boy in the original picture.
Azim contacted BBC Trending and connected them with Arif Ahmadi, Murtaza’s father and Azim’s brother, who confirmed that it was in fact his son in the picture.
“This little kid really loves Messi and football,” Arif said. “It is not possible for us to buy [a jersey] for him. Because I am a simple farmer. So the kids decided to use the plastic.”
https://twitter.com/barcastuff/status/691970230843789312
As a native of the Jaghori District in the eastern Ghazni province, a rural region of Afghanistan, Murtaza was elated to hear that he had become famous from his humble home. “He heard from his friends who have Internet. They called and told us about it. My younger son is also hoping that foreign countries help us meet Messi and if we could be good football players like him in the future.”
Now that we can put a name to the face, it’s only a matter of time until Lionel Messi himself gets Murtaza a proper jersey. The countdown is on.