By Ayobami Okerinde
A photograph taken 19 years ago showing Lionel Messi bathing an infant Lamine Yamal has resurfaced online ahead of Sunday’s 2026 FIFA World Cup final between Argentina and Spain.
Messi, Argentina’s captain, will face Yamal, Spain’s teenage star, in what will be the first World Cup final meeting between the two.
The image was captured in 2007 during a charity calendar project organised by Barcelona in partnership with a local newspaper has regained attention after both footballers led their countries to the World Cup final.
The photograph shows a teenage Messi, then a promising Barcelona academy graduate, cradling and bathing baby Yamal during the charity photoshoot.
