Freestyle

No disrespect to Lionel Messi, but if your 10-year-old kid started doing this one day in the backyard, would you think “Gee, little Jimmy’s sure showing an inclination towards soccer” or would you think “Gee, little Jimmy may literally be the Devil incarnate”?

Based on a genetic family history more prone to madness than to footballing excellence, I’d opt for the latter. No disrespect to Messi, but if my son were doing this, I’d check for a weird birthmark and ask my local priest for seven sacrificial daggers. 

With six delicate touches, Leonardo created this masterpiece in 1995 while playing with Kashima Antlers in the Japanese J1 League. Still in the prime of his career, the attacker joined Kashima after the 1994 World Cup as a 24-year-old.