For many soccer players love of the game starts at a young age They carry the game with them wherever they go They don't even need a ball Some young players make a ball out of whatever they can find This ball could be a plastic bag stuffed with cloth The materials don't matter as long as there's a game Over time players develop their touch with the ball They learn what they can do with it and how to make great passes and slick moves Many of the world's greatest soccer players started out that way They went from playgrounds and alleyways to the Fédération Internationale de Football Association FIFA World Cup Their hard work and practice made them into some of the best ever to play the game
DRIBBLE LIKE LIONEL MESSI ionel Messi steals the ball from his opponent and sprints up field He seems to move faster with the ball than without it Two defenders try to force him to the outside But he slips past them with a clever tap of the ball Now it's just him and the goalkeeper Messi usually wins that battle Messi was born in Argentina in 1987 The year before Diego Maradona had led Argentina to a World Cup championship By the time Messi was 12 years old soccer scouts thought he might be the next Maradona Messi moved quickly through the lower ranks of his Messi was named best Spanish club FC Barcelona At player in the world by age 17 Messi played his first game FIFA every year from 2009 to 2012 with Barcelona's senior team Lionel Messi keeps his head up and looks for open teammates as he controls the ball
