Buenos Aires, June 24 (EFE).- The attacker and leader of the Argentine national team, Lionel Messi, who turns 37 this Monday, expressed his desire to pose in a photo with the historic former American basketball player Michael Jordan.

“They asked me for so many photos, why can’t I have one with him? It’s the thickest (largest) thing there is, right? I don’t know much about basketball either, nor am I a big fan, but he was a reference in all sports,” he declared in an interview with the streaming channel ‘Clank’, by Argentine journalist Juan Pablo Varsky.

The Inter Miami forward regretted not having been able to enjoy the career of one of the emblems of the NBA in the United States, who won six championships (1991, 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997 and 1998) and five MVP awards for the most valuable player of the year (1988, 1991, 1992, 1996 and 1998) in the fifteen seasons he played.

Apart from showing his admiration for baskets, a discipline that on several occasions he revealed to be his favorite after football, Messi spoke about his early relationship with the ball, something that began as a simple hobby that would later turn him into one of the sporting icons. most important in the history of football.

“When I started playing, I was three or four years old and I wasn’t aware of the titles I could win or the World Cups. I played because I liked to play, it was my hobby. He was looking for someone to play with, and if not, he would play little games or kick against a wall,” the man from Rosario recalled.

The former FC Barcelona and Paris Saint Germain player revealed that since he was little he realized that he was different, because of what he did and the number of people who came to see him, although at first it was difficult for him to understand what all that admiration was about.

“Although I didn’t realize it, I began to understand it when I got older. But I am clear that I was born this way because God chose me. I tried to take advantage of it to get the most out of it, but I didn’t do anything to be the player I was when I was little, beyond everything I did later to improve,” he said.

Regarding the possible retirement of the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner from France Football magazine, he commented that it will continue until “God willing.”

“It will be up to what it has to be (regarding the end of his career). I continue to enjoy everyday life, playing ball. And when I am no longer a professional, I will continue playing ball with my children. It is the sport that we love the most, it identifies us the most since we were children,” he declared.

These days, Messi is participating in the Copa América, which is being held in the United States and to which Argentina has arrived as the top favorite, after winning the Brazil 2021 edition and lifting the World Cup in Qatar last year.