"Messi Jr." speaks candidly about the "real Messi" after Argentina's dominant display in their first 2026 World Cup match.
On 17 June 2026, Messi Jr., Chanathip Songkrasin, captain of the Thai national team, posted on social media about Lionel Messi, the legendary captain of Argentina, who delivered an outstanding performance leading his team to a 3-0 victory over Algeria in their opening Group J match of the 2026 World Cup.
Although Lionel Messi is already 38 years old, he continues to amaze fans worldwide by scoring a hat trick in this game, matching the all-time World Cup goal record of 16 goals held by German legend Miroslav Klose.
Meanwhile, Messi Jr., Chanathip Songkrasin, posted a brief message on his personal social media about his idol Lionel Messi, saying, "I feel so lucky to have lived in the era to watch Messi play."
Chanathip Songkrasin, known as Messi Jr., has had the chance to face the real Lionel Messi on the field twice. The first was a special football match between Thailand and Barcelona, the Spanish La Liga giant, held at Rajamangala Stadium in 2013, where "Barca" won 7-1.
The second encounter was in 2022 when Chanathip moved to Kawasaki Frontale, the reigning J1 League champions in Japan, during a preseason tour in Japan by Paris Saint-Germain, the French Ligue 1 champions. PSG narrowly won 2-1, with the real Messi scoring one goal. Messi Jr. played until the 56th minute before being substituted.
