Six-year-old Murtaza Ahmadi made a Lionel Messi jersey out of a plastic bag in hopes that he would one day meet the superstar Barcelona footballer. And he finally did in Doha!
The organizers of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, with the UN Refugee Agency, gave Ahmadi the chance to meet his idol in Doha this week.
"The six-year-old boy who dreamed of meeting his hero, Messi, finally comes true," the 2022 World Cup organizers tweeted.
He not only met Messi, but also got to walk onto the pitch with him right ahead of a friendly match against Dubai-based club Al-Ahli.
They even held hands as they walked together. Ahmadi couldn't get enough of Messi, reaching out for his hand every chance he got.
"I’m very happy to have met my hero. It is a dream for me,” Ahmadi said, according to TIME.
Ahmadi took the Internet by storm in January. Photos of him wearing a white-and-blue striped plastic bag, with Messi's jersey number and name written across the back, began making the rounds online.
People wanted to know who Messi's biggest fan was, and they finally found him in east Afghanistan. Now, that little boy's dream has come true.