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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Entertainment
Sam Elliott-Gibbs

Lionel Messi's wife Antonela battled back from tragedy to be World Cup winner's rock

They do say that behind every great sports star is a driving-force partner who is there through the good times and the bad.

Lionel Messi's wife Antonela Roccuzz hasn't had to pick up the pieces too often in his glory-drenched career.

Having captured the Ballon D'or a record seven times, and with four time Champions League winner there's not been many years when she's been forced to pick her husband up from the floor.

In fact, the 35-year-old footballer is the one who has be need to help soothe the heartache.

As Messi solidified his status as the greatest footballer of all time on Sunday, the love of his life was close at hand - and together, they've been through so much.

It was a family affair at Sunday's World Cup final for the Argentina super star (Instagram)
Antonela Roccuzz has battle back from tragedy to power Lionel Messi's path to the top (Instagram)

She always is there for him and alongside their three smiling children, they celebrated him 'completing football' after the epic World Cup final against France together as a family.

Always by his side, she was never going to miss his crowning glory in the sweltering heat of Qatar.

So who is the woman who inspires the Paris Saint-Germain playmaker? Let's find out more about their story.

Teen sweethearts

They fell in love as youngsters - and first met when they were just five (Ronald Wittek/EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock)

Antonela and the football mega star met as young children in their hometown of Rosario in Argentina.

Playing together as kids when he was just five years old, they've been in each others lives since the early 90s.

The cousin of Messi's childhood friend Lucas Scaglia, they quickly grew close as the years went on. The spark - friends say - was there from an early age.

He moved to Barcelona when he was 13 but the pair remained in contact.

The football legend would often visit her house in his youth just to see her and it soon became clear this was going the distance.

But they only went on to go public with their relationship in 2008 - since then, they have rarely spent time apart.

Heartache ahead

But Messi has had to guide his wife through some personal trauma (FIFA via Getty Images)

It's not just Antonela who has been needed in times of difficulty.

The former dental student has had to face tragedy - and needed Lionel more than ever back in 2005.

Antonela’s best friend, Ursula Notz, died in a car accident and it left her world shattered.

Lionel did not hesitate in catching a flight to go back to Argentina to support his long-time love after the horrific and devastating news.

He was there for her as she came to terms with her friend's death.

Argentina's "wedding of the century"

They got hitched in style as an A-list cast celebrated with them (Instagram/antonelaroccuzzo)

They tied the knot in July 2017 with a ceremony billed as Argentina's "wedding of the century"

The childhood sweethearts got hitched in a lavish civil ceremony at a luxury hotel in the heart of Rosario.

A host of footballing greats past and present, including Xavi Hernandez, Carles Puyol, Cesc Fabregas and Sergio Aguero strutted their stuff on the red carpet.

Crowds have gathered both at the local airport, awaiting the stars arriving in private jets, and also outside the hotel, adorning the streets in a bid to catch a glimpse of hometown hero Messi.

The bride wore an exquisitely detailed mermaid-style gown, designed by Rosa Clara, for the ceremony.

Why he loves her

Lionel says wife Antonela is the most wonderful person he knows (Instagram/antonelaroccuzzo)

Not surprisingly, the football great does prefer to keep his personal life as private as possible.

But he has outlined why Antonela is so special to him - and why he loves her so much.

"The truth is that I admire everything about her,” he said.

"She has many good qualities: how she gets by on a daily basis; her personality; she is always in a good mood; and she always faces up to problems in an admirable way.

"She is a very intelligent person who is great in all aspects of life.”

Mini Messi takeover!

The couple are parents to Thiago, nine, Mateo, six, and Ciro, four (AFP via Getty Images)

You couldn't help but be moved by seeing perhaps the greatest player ever be swamped by his children after clinching the World Cup against France.

Many are mourning his imminent retirement, but could this just be the start of Messi mania?

Lionel and Antonella have three sons, after welcoming Ciro into the world in 2018.

Their first son, Thiago, was born in 2012 and is football mad.

Mateo soon followed in 2015 and according to some has some fancy footwork just like his dad.

Maybe we've not seen nothing yet!

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