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Irish Mirror
Irish Mirror
Sport
Mark McCadden

Dublin-based Argentine backs Lionel Messi to sign for hometown club Newell’s Old Boys

They'll be busy painting some new murals of Lionel Messi in Rosario.

The city, located 300km northwest of Buenos Aires, is the hometown of Argentina’s latest World Cup winning captain.

Angel di Maria also hails from Rosario, as does Lionel Scaloni, La Albiceleste’s head coach.

“I tell you, Rosario is the capital of football,” said one Dublin-based Argentine fan last night.

Fabian Costello was born and raised in the same neighbourhood as Messi and he played under Marcelo Bielsa at local club Newell’s Old Boys.

In 1987, the year Messi was born, Costello won the Copa Libertadores - the South American equivalent of the Champions League - with Uruguayan side Penarol.

One of almost one million Argentinians with Irish heritage, he moved here with wife Claudia many years ago.

His work after football as an engineer took him to Cork and now he lives in Glenageary, where he coaches renowned schoolboys and girls club St Joseph’s Boys.

Yesterday he felt as strong a connection as ever with his hometown, as he watched Messi lead Argentina to glory with Claudio, son Mariano and daughter-in-law Sadhbh from his living room in the Dublin suburb.

He reckons that same connection could bring Messi home for one final swansong.

“Everybody says now that Messi is going to go back to Newell’s Old Boys. It’s a rumour. It would be so special in many ways,” said Costello.

“This (the World Cup win) is his greatest achievement, but the rumour is they want to make all his dreams come true, and his dream was to play for Newell’s Old Boys.

“I would say he will be playing there. Maybe two or three matches, but he will.

“And it is going to be absolutely amazing to get a picture of Maradona and Messi playing for Newell’s Old Boys, for the same club.

“It is going to be something for people to love forever.

“It would mean so much to him especially because he was born in Rosario, a couple of miles from my house. We were born in the same neighbourhood.

“There are some wonderful murals of him there. They are unbelievably beautiful works of art.”

Maradona had a short spell at Newell’s Old Boys - around the time when a six-year-old Messi watched on from the terraces and played in the club’s academy.

Messi left Rosario in early 2001, but his hometown never forgot him.

“The feeling for Messi is amazing,” said Costello.

“Everyone wanted the World Cup, especially in Rosario, for Messi, for Di Maria and the two coaches.

“Many of the greatest players are from there.

“Many people look to Rosario as the cradle of football, because Messi and Maradona played there.

“Messi loved to play for Newell’s Old Boys, even if he played only as a child.

“We are proud in so many ways of the city. You can only imagine what it is like there now, the celebrations.

“Messi is us. Messi means everything, he means football.”

So what did Costello make of yesterday’s final, a match that will be remembered as possibly the greatest World Cup decider of all time?

“It was one of the best matches I have ever seen,” he said.

“I could not relax. My passion came over me. Especially because it was the last Messi World Cup.

“But when Messi scored the third, I said, okay, this is the end, because I didn’t think France would have the strength of mind to recover.

“Thank God for the goalkeeper, for Martinez.

“We say, you have to suffer in a match. I think that’s the way Argentina plays, it’s risky and sometimes you have to suffer.

“But thank God we are champions.

“It’s a tango and in tango you suffer. It’s music, it’s passion. Tango is a complaint, you complain about life and in the end you move forward.”

He added: “I am very happy because very many Irish people supported Argentina.

“I know we had a good connection, but this was unreal. So many people all over Dublin called me saying, ‘we support you’.

“I know the links with Alexis MacAllister. I know his uncle. He is very passionate about Ireland. He has been here many, many times.

“We worked together for many years in Rosario for the St Patrick’s Irish Association (Asociación Católica San Patricio).”

It’s back to the training pitch for Costello and his Joey’s Boys Under-12 side next Friday - and no doubt there will be plenty of chat about yesterday’s game.

“You can have many differences in Argentina, but football joins us together. You forget any differences,” he said.

“It means so much for many people across the world that the greatest player in the world has won the World Cup. It’s a win for more than just Argentina. It’s unbelievable.

“The team won the Copa America, the Finalissima against Italy and now the World Cup. It’s brilliant.

“People say it’s a fairytale, and it is a fairytale. It’s unbelievable.”

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