Playing together at Newell's Old Boys at an early age, Lucas Scaglia and Lionel Messi remain friends today

By Matthew Levine



If you had seen Lionel Messi as a kid, would you have thought his career would’ve blossomed as it has? Well, neither did those that did.

“We always knew he was a great player but could never think as a kid, he’d be at the place he is now,” Jacksonville Armada FC midfielder Lucas Scaglia told NASL.com.

However, Scaglia is certainly happy for his long-standing friend, who has become a worldwide name and etched it into not only the Barcelona history books but also those around the world.

“He’s my friend, so to know that he’s doing so well, I’m happy,” he said.

The pair’s relationship dates back to their time in the Newell’s Old Boys’ youth ranks. It’s where they began to forge their bond that is still strong today.

As kids, they would juggle a soccer ball wherever they went and, sometimes, were given money by on-lookers.

“When we were little and we would travel, we would start playing. People used to toss us a little bit,” Scaglia said.

The now 27-year-old has also played against and with Angel Di Maria. The current Manchester United winger featured against Scaglia in the El Clasico Rosarino – the derby between Newell’s Old Boys and Rosario Central. They were also members of the same Under-20 Argentinian National Team.

However, the Armada FC defender’s relationship with Di Maria hasn’t developed the same as it has with Messi.

“We don’t have the same relationship as we did back then, but I enjoyed playing with him,” Scaglia noted.

Now, Scaglia will have a deep Argentine connection once more in Jacksonville, which has helped him settle in.

“It makes me more comfortable, but I’ve been trying to form bonds and friendships with the other players from the United States and different countries,” he said.

“I’m trying to learn English, and they are trying to learn a bit of Spanish.”

Like many of the Armada FC players, Scaglia came to play in America, for the first time, because of the project being put forth in Jacksonville ahead of the club’s inaugural season in the North American Soccer League (NASL).

“The project interested me and how the league is growing,” he said.

And perhaps Messi will follow his friend to Jacksonville, as a spectator of course, to watch his friend and the rest of the Armada FC compete in a league match.

“I don’t know,” Scaglia said. “I hope so.”