The Argentine star has lit up the MLS but can he connect with the spoken word in the same way he does with the ball?
Football players move from club to club, league to league, and country to country. The latter of these switches can often involve some pressure on the individual to learn the local language and culture, some taking it in their stride, others feeling well outside their comfort zone.
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Messi: from Argentina to the USA, via Spain and France
In the 2023 summer transfer window we have seen the usual private jet journeys carrying top stars, and lesser known ones, to pastures new sometimes crossing oceans to reach a continental change. One of the most high profile of these was Lionel Messi who swapped Paris Saint-Germain in the French capital for a challenge in Major League Soccer down in Florida with Inter Miami.
The Argentine, now 36, began life in Rosario, Santa Fe, and after five years at Newell’s Old Boys headed to Barcelona where he became, in many eyes, the greatest player to have ever featured in The Beautiful Game. From Spain, as his genius was starting to fade (I said ‘starting’!) but financial pressures at the Camp Nou grew, he crossed the border into France. Two seasons was enough for him there before embarking on his fledgling, but incredibly impactful, US adventure. Four countries, four main languages in each (Spanish, Catalan, French and English) so how many does Messi speak well?
Does Messi speak English?
The main question many people are asking giving the move to the MLS is whether or not he speaks English, knowing that Spanish is already a given. We’ve not yet had a press conference or television interview with the star, when many Americans will want to hear views straight from the horse’s, sorry, GOAT’s mouth, and not through a nearby translator. As teammate Deandre Yedlin said when he joined a few weeks ago, he had spoken in English but “not a whole ton” of it.
At Barcelona, the famous number 10 definitely got to grips with some Catalan, but there is little evidence that French ever got serious attention. Instead, English was said to be the focus while in Paris, and his wife Antonella Roccuzzo is reported to have helped him too as she speaks quite well. As far as we know, there have been no other classes of German, Chinese or Arabic over the Argentine’s years.
It can’t be too long before we get a taste of what he can say in English, but he may, like others, choose to offer managed and prepared phrases as he builds his confidence. With his ability to command a ball at will no matter the conditions, we have no doubt that he will master a few words to converse with his angloparlante counterparts. Let’s just hope that David Beckham isn’t teaching him!