Imagine walking into your gym in the morning, like every other day, and seeing football great Lionel Messi going about his routine on the treadmill. To say you would be shocked, would be an understatement!
But that's what happened to Valentina Jure on the last day of 2019. She could not believe her eyes, when she saw the Barcelona striker at the public gym in Fisherton Rosario. Messi, who hails from the city, is on a break now, with Barcelona scheduled to play their next match on January 4 against Espanyol.
It's not known what prompted him to opt for the public gym rather than his private one, but for the people at the gym, New Year seemed to have come early.
The 32-year-old used the machines like anybody else and smiled and interacted with the people there, Jure was quoted as saying by a local news outlet.
Interestingly, her picture showed Messi on the treadmill, with the TV screen in front of him showing highlights from a Barcelona match, including his goal! The image has since went viral on social media.
Fui al gym y me encontré a Messi viendo goles de Messi pic.twitter.com/NKz0srE4K1
— Valen Jure (@Valenjure1) December 30, 2019
Some netizens called him “self-centred” for putting on his match highlights at the public gym. Jure, however, clarified that that channel was already on when Messi came. "I want to say that the channel with his goals was already set when he arrived," she told Rosario Nuestro.
"I like to clarify it because people have written to me saying that it is self-centered but it was nothing like that—he was super humble with everyone while we were there."
Returning from an injury, Messi has been on a roll, scoring 13 goals in as many La Liga appearances.
