Fan / no debate

💔 One of Patrick Stewart’s most beautiful memories was meeting Lionel Messi, not for himself, but for his wife. His emotional story hits differently following his passing. Rest in peace. 🕊️ The most beautiful part of this story isn’t simply that Patrick Stewart met Lionel Messi. It’s that he went through all of that just to give his wife a moment she would never forget. And the joy on his face as he remembered Messi’s smile makes the story even more touching. A beautiful memory, a beautiful love story, and a moment his wife will always have. “This hand actually shook Lionel Messi’s hand on Monday evening. Not because I personally wanted to meet him, but because my wife did. Lionel Messi has made my wife fall in love with football. She had absolutely no interest in it until she watched this man play. I knew he would be attending this event. I had accepted an invitation to present one of the awards, as I’m also chairman of an academy at an excellent English football club, a club I’ve supported since I was seven years old. I knew there would be many famous people there, not just from British football, but internationally. I didn’t know Messi would be there, but I hoped he would. I told my wife that if he was there, I would do everything I could to get us face-to-face with him. She said: ‘What if Messi becomes the one person who refuses everything?’ I told her: ‘That’s okay. Absolutely okay.’ But it was extremely difficult. There were security arrangements unlike anything I’d ever seen before. You might have thought the royal family was attending, because Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo were there, along with another Argentine legend, Maradona. At one point, they brought a football onto the stage for a young England international. It was impossible to get close to them. I was sitting in the front row, but at the far end of the auditorium, while all these stars were at the other end. I decided that as soon as the ceremony ended, I would try to reach them quickly. They started saying: ‘Thank you all, it’s been a wonderful evening. Thank you, see you next year.’ I turned to my wife and said: ‘Move away, and stay close to me.’ I rushed along the front of the auditorium, between the edge of the stage and the front row, saying: ‘Excuse me, excuse me, please let me through!’ I realized people must have been thinking: ‘Oh my God, there must be an emergency! Something must have happened!’ Eventually, I reached the security barrier. I kept saying: ‘Excuse me, I’m Patrick. I’m sorry. I’m really embarrassing myself.’ I repeated: ‘I’m Patrick Stewart! I’m Patrick Stewart!’ I thought my name might help me get past security. When I finally reached them, they were saying: ‘Oh, okay, okay!’ I saw Cristiano Ronaldo lift his head and look at me as if to say: ‘Who is this man?’ But I couldn’t see Leo. He wasn’t in his seat. He had turned around and was leaning over his chair, and because he’s relatively short, he was completely hidden behind the people standing there. I stood behind Messi, and then he got up, turned around, and we were face-to-face. Oh my God, there was his face! A huge smile lit up my face. He smiled back at me with a radiant smile. I said: ‘Mr. Messi, please, my wife.’ We shook hands. Then I asked him: ‘May I take a picture of you two together, please?’ I didn’t take a selfie. I took a photograph of Lionel Messi and my wife standing side by side. Then his wife (Antonela) said: ‘I want a picture with you too!’ All of this happened just four nights ago, and as you can see, I’m still deeply moved and incredibly excited about what happened.”