Lionel Messi is so good some people are willing to risk life, limb and a clean criminal record just to touch him. This was the case Sunday, when a fan ran onto the field and hugged the soccer superstar during a league game between Spain’s top two teams.
Messi scored twice in Barcelona’s 4-1 win over Atletico Madrid. The goals were the 89th and 90th of Messi’s record-breaking year.
One Barcelona fan decided to personally congratulate him for having a stellar 2012. The fan jumped onto the field, dodged a steward and made a beeline for the Argentine forward.
Messi was standing on the nearby sideline, so there was no danger of the fan running out of breath before reaching his hero. When he arrived, he reached out and gave Messi a big hug. Messi obliged with a one-armed embrace of his own. Stewards arrived within seconds, splitting the pair and ending the Kodak moment.
The 25-year-old is no stranger to these sorts of things. In August, a fan interrupted a game between Germany and Argentina to shake his hand. Two months later, a referee asked Messi to take a photo with him at halftime of Argentina’s 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifier against Chile.
Credit Sunday’s fan for following the proper protocol. He waited until second-half stoppage time to interrupt play. Perhaps the prosecutor will take this into consideration when he decides what sort of charges the fan will face.
Watch the fan take the field and hug Messi in the video below.
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Thumbnail photo via Twitter/@fcbspot
