FOOTAGE has emerged of Lionel Messi showing off his almost supernatural ball control skills while staying in South Africa for the 2010 World Cup.
The legendary footballer’s ability with a ball at his feet is not a surprise to anyone anymore.
But fans used to seeing him dance through defenders with the ball on the floor might not have seen just how good he is at freestyling as well.
The star showed off his ball juggling skills alongside his team-mates in his hotel room in 2010, with video of the stunning show of skill shared by former Newcastle cult hero Jonas Gutierrez, in commemoration of Messi’s international retirement.
The video shows ex-Liverpool winger Maxi Rodriguez juggling the ball while sat on the edge of a bed in a hotel room, with former Manchester City star Martin Demichelis grinning as he watched on.
Rodriguez then throws the ball out of frame, with the camera panning to reveal Messi, then in his early 20s, sat on a chair.
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The little magician flicks the ball up off the floor and begins to juggle it perfectly while adding tricks like alternating feet.
He goes on to make over 100 touches while keeping the ball off the floor, and makes the entire feat look trivial with his playful smile as he goes.
He then bounces it back to Rodriguez, whose comparatively clumsy pass back is somehow plucked out of the air by Messi before he goes straight back to his skilful display.
Gutierrez shared the video to his Instagram account, saying in the caption: “Rodriguez starts doing some incredible keep-ups, and then Messi takes off and elevates the moment to something sublime—it’s impossible to stop watching this video.”
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The fan favourite playfully added in the comments: “All I want to say is that I didn’t do the same thing—or something better—because I didn’t want to upstage him, hahaha.”
Even footballing royalty like Sergio Aguero was clearly impressed, commenting: “He has a magnet on his feet.”
Sadly the rest of the World Cup for Argentina did not go as smoothly as their skill showcase did.
The side lost 4-0 to Germany in the quarter-finals, with Miroslav Klose, Thomas Muller and Arne Friedrich all on the scoresheet for the European side.