A TINY football fan who had his first shirt made from a plastic bag had his face light up when he was handed a signed shirt from international star Lionel Messi.
Murtaza Ahmadi from Afghanistan could not buy the real thing, so his family decorated a striped blue and white bag for him to play in.
An image of the boy went viral – and caught the footballer’s attention.
The adorable five-year-old’s ‘shirt’ won him a Argentina shirt signed by the Barcelona star recently crowned World Player of the Year.
Little Murtaza Ahmadi was given handed the precious shirt this week, UNICEF confirmed.
“I love Messi and my shirt says Messi loves me,” Murtaza said upon receiving the 28-year-old’s gift.
Earlier this month Murtaza’s father, Arif Ahmadi, said: “Murtaza became a fan of Messi by watching television.
“He asked me to find a Messi shirt for him with Messi’s name on it but I couldn’t find him the jersey because we live in a remote village far from the bazaar.
“Then his brother made a plastic jersey for him and posted his photo on Facebook.”
Murtaza Ahmadi showed off his skills
And after receiving the shirt, Murtaza got to show off his own skills.
Messi, who won the FIFA Ballon d’Or in January, scored his 28th and 29th goals of the season on Tuesday night as Barcelona beat Arsenal 2-0 in the Champions League.
