Jorge spent his final months alternating between medical centre in Rosario and his home, says family
\n BUENOS AIRES
\nJorge Messi, the father of soccer star Lionel Messi, died on Friday night at the age of 68 at a medical clinic in the Argentine city of Rosario after a long illness, the Argentine footballer\u2019s family confirmed to Reuters.
\nJorge spent his final months alternating between a medical centre in Rosario and his home, accompanied by his wife Celia and his children Rodrigo, Matias and Maria Sol, the family said.
\nLionel Messi spent time with his father after the World Cup before rejoining his club, Inter Miami, for whom he returned to action a week ago.
\nJorge closely accompanied his son Lionel throughout his career, beginning with his early years at Barcelona. He acted as a crucial pillar of support and, for several years, served as his representative.
\n\u201cI always needed my dad\u2019s approval, ever since I was a kid. After every match, I\u2019d ask him what he thought of how I played,\u201d the global soccer star said previously.
\nDuring the World Cup, the captain of the Argentine national team experienced mixed emotions after scoring a hat trick in the opening match against Algeria, breaking down in tears while celebrating his first goal.
\nLater, at a press conference, Lionel explained that his tears were due to \u201csomething unrelated to football\u201d after going through \u201ca few difficult, complicated days.\u201d
\nDays later, the family issued a statement regarding Jorge\u2019s \u201chealth situation\u201d, informing the public that he was undergoing medical treatment.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Jorge spent his final months alternating between medical centre in Rosario and his home, says family BUENOS AIRES Jorge Messi, the father of soccer star Lionel Messi, died on Friday night at the age of 68 at a medical clinic in the Argentine city of Rosario after a long illness, the Argentine footballer\u2019s family confirmed […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":560992,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-560994","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-sports"],"yoast_head":"\n