The La Masia report that advised against signing Messi in 2000: 'I don't think he should be signed'

In 2000, Leo Messi's future was in the hands of three La Masia coaches who had to decide whether a 13-year-old Argentine kid, recently arrived from Rosario, deserved a place in Barcelona's academy. Florent Torchut, a journalist for France Football, has uncovered the three reports written at the time. Two of them clearly backed his signing. The third, however, recommended not signing him because of his physical limitations. What happened next belongs to football history.

• Florent Torchut of France Football reveals three internal La Masia reports on Messi dating from 2000.
• Two coaches recommended signing the young Argentine; a third advised against it due to his height and build.
• The most critical coach believed Messi would not be able to compete in the cadete preferente category even a year later.
• Barcelona followed the favorable reports and completed his signing when he was just 13 years old.

The report that could have stopped Barcelona from signing Leo Messi

One of the La Masia coaches was particularly harsh in his assessment. He acknowledged Messi's technical quality, but believed his physique was an insurmountable obstacle at that stage. The boy was 142 centimeters tall, and in that coach's view, not even growing to 150 centimeters would allow him to perform in the cadete preferente category.

I consider him a player of unquestionable technical quality, but his physical limitation (142 cm) is too much for him to compete right now in his category. And next year even more so, because even if he grows, at 150 cm and with the difference in physical build he has, it will be very difficult for him to play in cadete preferente. I don't think he should be signed. At most, follow his development and test him again in a couple of years.

The two La Masia reports that did recommend signing Messi

Against that skeptical view, two other academy scouts had no doubts. One of them drew a hugely significant comparison by placing that 13-year-old boy alongside Diego Armando Maradona, with all due distance. His recommendation was clear: sign him and wait patiently for his development.

All due distance, he is a Maradona (young for his age). I would sign him, he has to go much further. We will see how he develops.

What Barcelona's coaches highlighted about the young Messi

The third report, also favorable, detailed the player's qualities at length. It described him as a technically complete player for his age, with a vision far superior to that of his teammates. It highlighted his agility, his sharpness, his dribbling and his ability to win one-on-one duels. It even underlined his clean ball striking and the power of his shot.

That same coach did acknowledge one obvious shortcoming: his height. Messi was small, ineffective in the air, and most of his opponents were physically stronger. But all those conditions faded into the background next to a talent that, looking back now, was already clear at the time.

Why Barcelona ended up signing Messi at 13

The club's final decision was to back the two reports that recommended signing him and to set aside the doubts of the third. It was the year 2000 and Messi had just turned 13. His move to Barcelona was completed shortly after those trials, and the rest is a story that has defined the club for more than two decades.

La Masia and the eternal debate between physique and talent

The revelation of these documents brings back a classic debate in youth football: how much physical condition should matter at early ages compared to football intelligence and technique. In Messi's case, La Masia made the right call by prioritizing the latter. That small, slight boy went on to become the greatest player in Barcelona's history.