Since Lionel Messi's arrival to Inter Miami, his bodyguard, Yassine Cheuko, has risen to international fame due to his fierce protection of Messi producing viral moments in the past year.
Cheuko is a mixed martial arts enthusiast that was hired by David Beckham to be Messi's personal protector. What Rodrigo De Paul does on the pitch with Argentina, Cheuko does whenever Messi's stateside, essentially. Now, Cheuko's often seen roaming MLS touchlines ready to pounce at any pitch invader eager to reach the Argentine star.
Over the past year and a half, videos showing Cheuko's lightning-fast runs to catch pitch invaders have amassed millions of views on social media. His imposing and intimidating presence should be enough to deter those who wish to reach the soccer legend; however, many still try to no avail to get within touching distance of their idol.
Nevertheless, over the weekend during Inter Miami's 3–1 win in Panama vs. Sporting San Miguelito, the impossible happened: a pitch invader got the better of Cheuko.
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Someone finally defeated Messi’s bodyguard 😂pic.twitter.com/qQzJX85I93
— Castro1021 (@Castro1021) February 3, 2025
The pitch invader was running full speed towards Messi and Cheuko quickly took off looking to get there first. When the pitch invader realized he wasn't going to reach Messi before Cheuko got a hold of him, he tried to slow down but lost his footing—perhaps the luckiest slip of all time. As he slid to the ground, he pulled off a sliding tackle worthy of some of the roughest defenders to ever grace a soccer pitch, taking out Cheuko, sending him spinning through the air. Having gotten passed his only barrier, the pitch invader was able to get up and hug Messi before Cheuko finally grabbed him and escorted him off the pitch.
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The video immediately went viral on social media, with many proclaiming the Cheuko had finally been defeated. The bodyguard took it with humor, even posting a picture of the incident with him flying through the air on his Instagram.
Messi and Inter Miami will play their final preseason game outside the U.S. against CD Olimpia in Honduras on Saturday, Feb. 8. you can bet that Cheuko will be there ready to pounce, hoping to have a better showing in his efforts at protecting the greatest player of all time.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Fan Gets the Better of Lionel Messi's Famous Bodyguard in Panama.
