A few weeks ago, a picture began circulating of a young child wearing an Argentina national team Messi jersey made out of a striped plastic bag with the Barcelona star's name and number written in ink. It was initially speculated that the child was from Iraq, but after some sleuthing it was discovered that he is from Afghanistan, and his name is Murtaza Ahmadi. He's five years old and "loves football and Messi." Chances are pretty good he'll get a proper jersey, now that he will meet his idol.CNN spoke to his father Arif from Joghori in the Ghazni Province of Afghanistan and learned the story of how the jersey came to be.A kid in Iraq .. pic.twitter.com/ZfOEpUCNvw
— Leo Messi (@messi10stats) January 16, 2016
Even before his identity was uncovered, the internet was buzzing to set up a meeting between Murtaza and Messi. Now, according to an Argentinian outlet, it's a go. Working with the Afghan Football Federation, Messi and Barcelona were able to reach out to his family and a meeting is in the works, though a specific date and time have not yet been set. EFE also spoke with Murtaza and he told them he wanted to "meet and play" with Messi. Hopefully the two will swap jerseys after the match.h/t 101 Great Goals"I told him that we were living in a poor village far from the city and it was impossible for me to get him the shirt."
"He kept crying for days asking for the shirt until his brother Hamayon helped him make one from the plastic bag to make him happy.