Lionel Messi sent Borussia Dortmund's 15-year-old striker a selection of birthday presents which inc
- Lionel Messi sent a strange gift to Borussia Dortmund wonder kid Youssoufa Moukoko for his 15th birthday — a photo collage of himself.
- Moukoko, who turned 15 on Wednesday, had the present waiting for him at Dortmund's training ground, ESPN reports.
- He also received a pair of Nike trainers and an FC Barcelona shirt, which was signed by a number of the Spanish club's players.
- "Oh my god! Got this as a gift from my idol," Moukoko posted on Instagram. "Many thanks, Leo Messi."
- Moukoko is touted as one of football's brightest young talents, having scored 18 times for Dortmund's U19s in just 11 games this season.
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Lionel Messi sent a strange gift to Borussia Dortmund wonder kid Youssoufa Moukoko for his 15th birthday — a photo collage of himself.
Moukoukou, who is touted as one of the world's top footballing prospects, arrived at training on Wednesday to find the present from the Argentine waiting for him, according to ESPN.
"Oh my god! Got this as a gift from my idol. Many thanks, Leo Messi. Thanks for all your birthday wishes," the teenager posted on Instagram, posing alongside the oddly-assembled photo collection.
—SPOX Redaktion (@spox) November 21, 2019
He also held up a separate photo of Messi, and was sat next to a pair of Nike trainers with a card alongside them that read "Youssoufa" on the envelope.
Messi also sent Moukoko an FC Barcelona shirt that had been signed by various players at the club, which the 15-year-old shared a photo of in a since expired Instagram story.
Moukoko has previously spoken of the Barca forward as his football icon, telling Bundesliga.com in November 2018: "Messi has always been my role model. Nobody else can do what he does."
And he's doing his best to impersonate the 32-year-old with Dortmund's youth teams.
The Cameroon-born striker has scored 18 times in just 11 games this term for the Under-19 team, according to ESPN, including hitting six on his debut against Wuppertaler SV in August.
Last season for the Under-17s, he managed an astonishing 40 goals after making his debut aged 12, while also become the youngest-ever player to score in the UEFA Youth League.
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