Messi-ah !

Soccer fever is everywhere. I, myself, am not an ardent supporter of any one team. I simply love watching the game, the players and taking in the excitement of a FIFA World Cup. Speaking of players, young talent has always enthralled me. Yes, there are the Beckhams, the Ronaldinhos, the Ronaldos and I will always love watching them. Btw, did you guys see Beckham bending it in today's match up against Ecuador. Twas priceless.

Coming back to young talent, if there is one player to watch for, its 18 year old Lionel Messi from Argentina. One look at him playing and you know Messi is special, very special. He walked away with both the Golden Shoe -AND- the Golden Ball awards in last years FIFA World Youth Championships. In the pre- Round of 16 matches, specifically the match against Serbia and Montenegro, Messi was substituted in with 4 minutes to spare and he pulls off 2 assists and 1 goal. Admittedly, S&M were worn out, were already 4 goals down and Messi was all fresh legs, but you can just look at Messi on the field and feel the goose pimples on your back.

Argentine Tevez and Brazilian Rubinho are a few other players (amongst several others) who are on my FIFA 2006 watchlist. Enjoy the rest of the games, Messi fans !!