Over the past year there have been a lot of stories to leave our emotions running high but very few were as heart-warming as Murtaza Ahmadi's tale.
The Afghan boy went viral after a picture of the six-year-old wearing a homemade football shirt out of a plastic bag was uploaded to social media.
The blue and white bag had the name of his hero, Barcelona FC star Lionel Messi, scribbled across it as he tried to emulate the Argentine player.
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Now, after 11 months, Murtaza has finally met his idol.
Five-time Ballon d'Or winner Messi held the little lad in his arms today in Doha, Qatar as his admirer donned the iconic Catalonia football top.
"He (Murtaza) asked me many times to buy a Messi shirt," said Arif, Murtaza's father. "I couldn't provide for him. Later, his brother made him this plastic shirt and posted his photo on Facebook."
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People can lose sight of why we love the beautiful game of football, choosing to focus on players' personal lives and financial gain. However, things like this, making dreams come true, is one of the reasons we truly adore it.
Featured image credit: Road to 2022 via Twitter
Featured Image Credit:Topics: Barcelona, Lionel Messi