UPDATED TO INCLUDE THE 2018 WORLD CUP

The story of one of the greatest footballers of all time, Barcelona and Argentina's Lionel Messi.

'I have seen the player who will inherit my place in Argentine football and his name is Messi' Diego Maradona

Despite all the fame and adulation, remarkably little is known about Lionel Messi, the modest and intensely private footballing genius. Just how did the boy from Rosario, Argentina, become the world's greatest player?

Guillem Balague has had unprecedented access to Messi's inner circle: his coaches, team-mates and family. In addition, Pep Guardiola has provided exclusive analysis of the player. The result is an authoritative and compelling account of the wonderful mystery that is Messi.

'I can tell my grandkids one day that I coached Lionel Messi' Pep Guardiola

Guillem Balague is the author of Messi, Barça, Pep Guardiola, A Season on the Brink, Cristiano Ronaldo, which won the British Sports Book Football Book of Year award in 2016, and Brave New World, his bestelling biography of Mauricio Pochettino. A key fixture of Sky Sports' coverage of Spanish football for many years, he now broadcasts on BBC Radio 5 Live and for LaLiga TV from Barcelona. He is also the UK Correspondent for AS, the Madrid-based Spanish sports newspaper, and El Larguero, Spain's most popular sports radio show. His work appears regularly in The Times and in Champions magazine, where he writes a regular column on international football. He is the Director of Football of Biggleswade United, and he won Influencer of the Year 2016 in the Football Blogging Awards.

http://www.guillembalague.com/en/home

https://twitter.com/GuillemBalague

https://www.facebook.com/guillembalague