Lionel Messi could barely pull onto his driveway when he returned home on Tuesday as Argentina fans flooded his street.
The Argentina players have returned to their families following their trophy parade in Buenos Aires, where they celebrated their World Cup success with thousands of supporters. However, captain and player of the tournament Messi struggled to park his car after returning to his home in Rosario, with a crowd of fans having gathered outside the property.
Footage of the 35-year-old pulling onto the driveway shows fans in Argentina shirts and holding replica World Cup trophies chanting: “Thank you Leo, thank you Leo.”
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A team of security guards were on hand to move the supporters out of the way as Messi’s car slowly creeped up the driveway towards his garage.
His welcome in Rosario comes after fans packed the streets of Buenos Aires to watch the squad parade the trophy through the city towards the Plaza de la Republica.
(Image: Twitter)
It has been reported that more than a million people flocked to the planned route, with the crowd so large that the team bus was unable to make it to the city centre.
As a result, the players were airlifted out of the city before completing the remainder of the route via helicopter, waving at fans from the sky as they passed over the crowds.
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(Image: Twitter)
Argentina won their third World Cup and first since 1986 on Sunday, with Messi scoring twice in a thrilling 3-3 draw with France. He then went on to convert from the penalty spot in their 4-2 shootout victory.
His celebratory Instagram post with the trophy has since become the most liked upload in the platform’s history, surpassing the previous record which was held by an egg.
Having won the player of the tournament, Messi is now the bookmakers’ favourite to win the Ballon d’Or for his performances in the 2022/23 season.
His nearest challenger is currently Paris Saint-Germain team-mate Kylian Mbappe, who pipped Messi to the Golden Boot with a hat-trick in the final.
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