@FootynewsGermán Pezzella recalls that his first real moment sharing the Argentina squad with Leo happened only during the final two matchdays of the qualifiers for Russia 2018. That morning, Éver Banega showed up to invite them over for mate in a room, but it was Gaby Mercado who accepted on Pezzella's behalf since he was still too new to speak up. When they walked toward the door, Banega didn't head to his own place; he went straight into Leo's room instead. Pezzella immediately panicked and tried to back out, telling Gaby that going into Leo's room on his very first morning felt impossible and that he was leaving to return to his own space. Gaby wouldn't let him go though, grabbing him and insisting they come inside anyway. Once in there, Pezzella sat silently while passing the mate gourd back and forth, convinced that staying quiet was the only way to avoid looking out of place among established stars. It took Leo breaking the silence to finally start a conversation, and when he did, he asked Pezzella specifically about Betis with such detailed knowledge that it stunned him. Messi knew everything about the club and every single one of Pezzella's teammates from that time. This level of involvement contradicted what many assumed, including Pezzella, who once thought Leo would just focus purely on playing and then leave without caring about off-pitch details. The realization hit hard: that is why he is who he is, because he gets involved in every detail. #LionelMessi

@FootynewsGermán Pezzella recalls that his first real moment sharing the Argentina squad with Leo happened only during the final two matchdays of the qualifiers for Russia 2018. That morning, Éver Banega showed up to invite them over for mate in a room, but it was Gaby Mercado who accepted on Pezzella's behalf since he was still too new to speak up. When they walked toward the door, Banega didn't head to his own place; he went straight into Leo's room instead. Pezzella immediately panicked and tried to back out, telling Gaby that going into Leo's room on his very first morning felt impossible and that he was leaving to return to his own space. Gaby wouldn't let him go though, grabbing him and insisting they come inside anyway. Once in there, Pezzella sat silently while passing the mate gourd back and forth, convinced that staying quiet was the only way to avoid looking out of place among established stars. It took Leo breaking the silence to finally start a conversation, and when he did, he asked Pezzella specifically about Betis with such detailed knowledge that it stunned him. Messi knew everything about the club and every single one of Pezzella's teammates from that time. This level of involvement contradicted what many assumed, including Pezzella, who once thought Leo would just focus purely on playing and then leave without caring about off-pitch details. The realization hit hard: that is why he is who he is, because he gets involved in every detail. #LionelMessi