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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to Spotlight Advanced. I'm Colin Lowther.

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<v Speaker 2>And I'm Alice Irasari. Spotlight uses a special English method

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<v Speaker 2>of broadcasting. It is easier for people to understand no

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<v Speaker 2>matter where in the world they live.

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<v Speaker 1>The score was even. It was late in the game.

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<v Speaker 1>He was running out of time. This was his last

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<v Speaker 1>chance to win the only title he had not won.

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<v Speaker 1>He had come close but failed in the past. His

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<v Speaker 1>career was almost over. He had to do something. He

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<v Speaker 1>needed to score one more goal. He needed one more

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<v Speaker 1>special moment to lift his country to the World Cup champion.

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<v Speaker 2>Today's Spotlight is about Lionel Messi. We look at it

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<v Speaker 2>struggles growing up in Argentina. We examine his rise through

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<v Speaker 2>youth football. We talk about his accomplishments as the top

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<v Speaker 2>football player in the world. We discuss his career long

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<v Speaker 2>pursuit of the World Cup Championship.

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<v Speaker 1>Football is often called the beautiful game. It combines strategy,

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<v Speaker 1>a constantly changing field, and teamwork. The players' athletic abilities

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<v Speaker 1>are impressive. They often look like ballet dancers as they

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<v Speaker 1>run and jump. Each team must kick the ball back

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<v Speaker 1>and forth to each other. The players cannot touch the

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<v Speaker 1>ball with their hands. Each team must keep the ball

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<v Speaker 1>from the other while moving toward the goal. If they

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<v Speaker 1>can kick the ball into the other team's goal, they

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<v Speaker 1>get a point. The team that finishes the game with

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<v Speaker 1>the most points wins.

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<v Speaker 2>Lionel Messi grew up in Rosario, Argentina. He was smaller

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<v Speaker 2>than other boys. When Messi was eight years old, doctors

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<v Speaker 2>discovered he had growth hormone disorder. His brain did not

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<v Speaker 2>make enough of the chemicals that told his body to grow.

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<v Speaker 2>Messi's parents started injecting him with medicine to help him

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<v Speaker 2>overcome the disorder. The treatment cost a lot of money,

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<v Speaker 2>it was difficult for his parents to afford.

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<v Speaker 1>Thankfully, Messi's skills as a young football player were improving.

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<v Speaker 1>The football club Newell's Old Boys offered to pay for

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<v Speaker 1>some of his treatment if Messi played football for them.

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<v Speaker 1>As he continued to play better, the Spanish club Barcelona

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<v Speaker 1>offered to pay for all his medical treatments if he

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<v Speaker 1>played for their youth school La Masia. Messi and his

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<v Speaker 1>family decided to accept the offer and move to Barcelona.

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<v Speaker 1>The team paid for all his remaining treatments until he

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<v Speaker 1>finished at the age of fourteen.

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<v Speaker 2>Messi had a hard time when they moved to Barcelona.

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<v Speaker 2>His new teammates teased him because he was so short. Also,

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<v Speaker 2>Messi did not speak Catalan, the language of Barcelona. He

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<v Speaker 2>spoke Spanish.

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<v Speaker 3>Messi said, my teammates were big, rough and kind of mean.

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<v Speaker 3>They did not pay attention to me. They spoke Catalan

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<v Speaker 3>among themselves. I cried a lot. I would lock myself

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<v Speaker 3>in my room and cry secretly. I did not want

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<v Speaker 3>my dad to find out.

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<v Speaker 1>Despite the hard change, Messi played well at the school.

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<v Speaker 1>He continued improving his skills. He was very good at

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<v Speaker 1>dribbling the ball. Dribbling is when a player kicks the

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<v Speaker 1>ball around the field. Messi was great at dribbling the

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<v Speaker 1>ball around defenders. He was very fast. He could run

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<v Speaker 1>faster while kicking the ball than most defenders could run.

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<v Speaker 1>He had grown to one hundred and seventy centimeters. He

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<v Speaker 1>was still smaller than most of the other players, but

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<v Speaker 1>Messi used it to his advantage. His smaller size allowed

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<v Speaker 1>him to slip by defenders. He also had great balance.

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<v Speaker 1>If a defender bumped him, he kept going. They nicknamed

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<v Speaker 1>him the Flea because he was so quick and hard

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<v Speaker 1>to catch.

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<v Speaker 2>While he was still in youth football, Messi helped Argentina

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<v Speaker 2>win the International Federation of Association Football or FIFA World

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<v Speaker 2>Youth Championship. At the age of seventeen, he turned professional.

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<v Speaker 2>He joined Barcelona's senior team FC Barcelona. Over the next

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<v Speaker 2>few years, he became the best player on the team.

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<v Speaker 2>Barcelona named him captain. He set the record for the

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<v Speaker 2>most goals scored in a season. He won the ballin

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<v Speaker 2>d'Or or Golden Ball as the best player in football

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<v Speaker 2>four straight seasons. When he was only twenty four, he

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<v Speaker 2>became Barcelona's all time leading scorer. Cristiano Ronaldo, one of

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<v Speaker 2>the best players Messi faith during his career, said.

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<v Speaker 1>Messi is the best I have played against. But there

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<v Speaker 1>was another player who challenged Messi even more than Ronaldo.

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<v Speaker 1>He was the hardest person for Messi to beat, and

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<v Speaker 1>he did not even play against Messi. He stopped playing

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<v Speaker 1>six years before Messi turned professional. His name was Diego Maradonna.

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<v Speaker 1>Maradonna was a hero in Argentina. He led Argentina to

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<v Speaker 1>the World Cup title in nineteen eighty six. The World

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<v Speaker 1>Cup is the biggest soccer tournament. It is held every

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<v Speaker 1>four years. Only the top thirty two national teams from

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<v Speaker 1>around the world attend Maradonna was the last person to

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<v Speaker 1>lead Argentina to the World Cup Championship. He was small

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<v Speaker 1>and quick like Messi. He was a great d rebeler too.

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<v Speaker 2>When Messi turned professional, Argentinians expected that he would lead

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<v Speaker 2>the national team to the World Cup championship. Everyone compared

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<v Speaker 2>into Maradona. They thought Messi would have success at the

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<v Speaker 2>World Cup, just like Maradona, but it did not happen.

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<v Speaker 2>Messi played very well in each World Cup tournament, but

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<v Speaker 2>Argentina did not win. He was even named the best

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<v Speaker 2>player in the tournament one year, even though Argentina lost.

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<v Speaker 2>Messi played in four World Cups and reached the final

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<v Speaker 2>game one year, but Argentina lost to Germany.

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<v Speaker 1>Messi had a very successful professional career. He won a

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<v Speaker 1>record eight Ballon d'Or awards named him the world's best

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<v Speaker 1>player eight times. He won many league titles with FC Barcelona.

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<v Speaker 1>He holds the record for the most goals scored for

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<v Speaker 1>one club, but he could not win the World Cup

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<v Speaker 1>championship like Maradonna. Some said he would never be better

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<v Speaker 1>than Maradonna without winning the World Cup.

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<v Speaker 2>When Messi was thirty five years old, he played in

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<v Speaker 2>his fifth World Cup. Many said he was not at

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<v Speaker 2>his best anymore. He was too old. They said he

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<v Speaker 2>was not as quick, but they were wrong. In Argentina's

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<v Speaker 2>first six matches, Messi scored five goals. He helped to

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<v Speaker 2>lead Argentina to the final match against France. France was

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<v Speaker 2>led by a young star named Bapei. The match was close,

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<v Speaker 2>who was tied. With time running out, one of Messi's

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<v Speaker 2>teammates kicked the ball towards France's goal. The goalkeeper blocked

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<v Speaker 2>the shot, but Messi instantly kicked the ball again into

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<v Speaker 2>the goal to give Argentina the lead, but France did

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<v Speaker 2>not give up. They tied the game.

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<v Speaker 1>When no one else was able to score, the teams

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<v Speaker 1>had a shootout. A shootout decides the winner of a

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<v Speaker 1>match that ends in a draw. Each team selects players

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<v Speaker 1>to take turns trying to kick the ball past the goalkeeper.

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<v Speaker 1>Whichever team makes the most goals wins the game. In

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<v Speaker 1>the shootout, Messi and his teammates made their first four

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<v Speaker 1>shots into the goal, but France's players missed two of

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<v Speaker 1>their attempts. Argentina won and Messi finally had his World

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<v Speaker 1>Cup championship. For the tournament Messi scored a total of

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<v Speaker 1>seven goals, assisted in three more goals, and was awarded

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<v Speaker 1>the Golden Ball as the best player in the tournament.

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<v Speaker 1>He is the only player to win the FIFA World

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<v Speaker 1>Cup Golden Ball twice. Not even Maradonna did it.

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<v Speaker 2>Many people once considered Lionel Messi too small to play football.

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<v Speaker 2>They did not believe he could compete with stronger players.

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<v Speaker 2>He would get hurt, he would not survive. But they

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<v Speaker 2>underestimated Messi's bravery. They did not know how much he

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<v Speaker 2>loved playing football. Now many think Messi is the greatest

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<v Speaker 2>football player ever.

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<v Speaker 1>Do you play or watch football? Have you ever seen

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<v Speaker 1>Lionel Messi play football? Who do you think is the

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<v Speaker 1>best football player ever? You can leave a comment on

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<v Speaker 1>our website at www dot Spotlight English dot com. You

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<v Speaker 1>can also find us on YouTube, Facebook, TikTok, Blue Sky,

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<v Speaker 1>and x. You can also get our programs delivered directly

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<v Speaker 1>to your Android or Apple device through our free official

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<v Speaker 1>Spotlight English app.

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<v Speaker 2>The writer of this program was Peter Anderson. The producer

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<v Speaker 2>was mitchyo Osaki. The voices you heard were from the

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<v Speaker 2>United Kingdom and the United States. All quotes were adapted

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<v Speaker 2>for this program and voiced by Spotlight. This program is

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<v Speaker 2>called the Flea Lionel Messi.

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<v Speaker 1>We hope you can join us again for the next

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<v Speaker 1>Spotlight program. Goodbye, h