Afghan child with makeshift Lionel Messi jersey will meet his hero

A young boy in Afghanistan became a media sensation after photographs of his makeshift football jersey, made out of a plastic bag, went viral on the Internet. Five-year-old Murtaza Ahmadi had been asking his family for a team jersey of his favourite football player, Barcelonas Lionel Messi, for some time. But his father, Arif Ahmadi, said such a present was outside the means for the family living in rural Ghazni province. So Murtaza and his siblings made their own.

An Afghan child that became an internet sensation for wearing a homemade shirt of Lionel Messi constructed out of a plastic bag is to meet his football hero. The Argentine striker was said to be moved by online photos of five-year-old Murtaza Ahmadi playing in a makeshift blue and white striped jersey with Messis name and number 10 written in marker pen.

After the images went viral the Barcelona stars father, Jorge Messi, said his son wanted to do something for the young fan, whose family, from the eastern Afghan province of Ghazni, cannot afford to buy a proper shirt.

Thanks to the internet, the boy has now a chance to get one delivered in person by his idol. The Afghanistan Football Federation (AFF) has been in contact with the footballer, who expressed the desire to meet Murtaza as soon as possible.

Messi has been in communication with the federation to set up a meeting with the young boy, AFF spokesman Sayed Ali Kazemi told AFP. We are working to see whether Messi will come to Afghanistan or the five-year-old will travel to Spain or they will meet in a third country.

The poignant image of Murtaza started circulating online earlier this month, leading to an outpouring of interest in the child. His family, living in a deprived farming district of Afghanistan, was traced down after an internet campaign to gift the boy a real football shirt. I love Messi, he plays well, Murtaza told an AFP reporter, adding that there was no playground near his home and the only ball he had was punctured. I want to be like Messi, when I grow up.