Introducing baby Messi

After no small amount of fuss and red tape, an Argentinian football fan has gained permission to call his baby son Messi.

Mr Héctor Varela, who hails from General Roca, a city in Patagonia's Río Negro province, got the legal all-clear this past Friday, so his two-week-old son has become the first Argentinian to be given the first name Messi.

"A lot of kids have been called Lionel in Messi's honour, but this [using Messi's surname as a first name] is an even stronger tribute", Varela told a local radio show. The baby's full name has been registered as Messi Daniel Varela.

"Messi is my idol. I've never seen anyone else like him and there never will be", he went on.

According to Mr Varela, his wife accepted his suggestion for the name "right away". "My missus has always liked him [Lionel Messi] because of the type of person he is. He's always humble and kind to everyone, so she didn't think twice", he claimed.

The Independiente supporter hatched the idea some time ago, but had to wait a while to make it happen. "I have three children: two daughters and now Messi. We were going to use Messi for our first-born, who is now 8, but it turned out to be a girl. The same thing happened with our second daughter, who is 5", he explained.