“In Barcelona, on December 14, 2000, in the presence of Messrs. Minguela and Horacio, Carles Rexach, Technical Secretary of FC Barcelona, undertakes, under his responsibility and against some dissenting opinions, to sign the player Lionel Messi, “as long as the agreed amounts are fulfilled,” Rexach wrote.
Horacio Gagioli, the Argentine agent who first drew attention to Messi at Barcelona, and Josep Minguela, the club's transfer advisor at the time, also signed the napkin.
Along with Rexach, Minguela helped organize Messi's initial trial with FC Barcelona Blaugrana In September 2000.
On December 14, Rexach, Minghella and Gaggioli met for lunch at the Pompeia Tennis Club to sign the handkerchief. That same night, Juan Gaspart, then Barcelona's president, confirmed and concluded the agreement, which would later change football history.
After the development of the famous The diamond – Barcelona Academy – Messi will become one of the best players in the history of football, as he made his debut with the first team in 2004 at the age of sixteen, becoming the youngest player to represent the club in an official match at that moment.
That was the beginning of a legendary career for Messi, during which he played 778 matches for Barcelona, broke the club's scoring record and won 35 titles during his time at Camp Nou, including 10 Spanish League titles and four Spanish League titles. Champions. .
“It is one of the most exciting items I have ever handled,” Ian Elling, director of luxury books and manuscripts at Bonhams New York, said in a statement.
“Yes, it is a tissue, but it is the famous tissue that was at the beginning of Lionel Messi’s career. He added: “It changed Messi’s life, the future of FC Barcelona, and was instrumental in providing some of the most wonderful moments in football to billions of fans around the world.”