Lionel Messi Could Have Joined Real Madrid over Barcelona, Per Ex-Agent

Lionel Messi's former agent Horacio Gaggioli said the Barcelona superstar could have joined Real Madrid as a youngster instead.

He told Ivan Raupp of Globo Esporte (h/t ESPN.com):

"Due to life circumstances, I went to live in Barcelona, and I brought him to Barca for a trial. But I was about to live in Madrid.

"If that had happened, I would have taken him to Madrid for a trial. That's life; those are the details.

"Today, Messi could have been a Real Madrid player, of course. The family wanted to come to Spain, to the city where I was to have some support."

Messi joined Barcelona in 2001 at the age of 13. He has since made 585 appearances for the Blaugrana, scoring a mind-numbing 510 goals in the process.

La Liga celebrated his 30th birthday on Saturday with a selection of his highlights:

Messi has won the Spanish top flight eight times with Barcelona, helping limit Real to just two titles since 2008.

He has also won a staggering 22 other trophies over the course of his career:

The UEFA Champions League also hailed his incredible record in that competition:

Gaggioli also revealed he had his doubts about the forward until he watched him play:

"When I saw him at the airport, I thought that boy could not be a footballer, because he was too small and skinny.

"I did not have a good impression. But when I saw him training in the Barca fields, I realised that he was a great player who could play without a doubt."

The idea of Messi joining Real instead of Barcelona will remain one of football's greatest "what ifs," as the world might have seen the Argentinian line up alongside Cristiano Ronaldo in perhaps the most fearsome attack ever.

While that would have been a mouthwatering prospect, in many ways it's far more interesting for the two to compete against one another, and though both are in their 30s, they're set to continue doing so for years to come.