Oh and for the record, you're not fast because you don't know how to run. Luckily it's something that people are taught which is what sprinting coaches are for.
And do you know the amount of 8 year olds who are mini-Messis? There's thousands of 8 year old Messis. And by 8 years old, Lionel Messi had 4 years of professional coaching experience as well as 6ish years of playing with older semi/professional footballers
If I spent my whole life training to be a sprinter I'd still never reach the Olympics. Not even close. I'm not cut out for it and never will be. I was always more of a slow-twitch kinda muscle guy as opposed to a fast-twitch. I was great at long distance...sprinting? Nah.
And yeah, you're actually agreeing with me in a way. There are plenty born with similar natural tendencies, thousands probably, agreed, but there are god knows how many more without it. I also think you're slightly downplaying just how good Messi was at that age. I honestly believe you can't teach every kid to be Messi. Hard work simply *isn't* enough and there are countless scientific studies that back that up. Messi didn't join a professional club, Newells, until he was 8, he had coaching at a children's team from 5-8, like I did too actually. Like most football obsessed kids do as well.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/10207981
According to his coaches, he was deemed special from the second he joined Grandoli. They improved him, im sure, as did Newells and Barca, but he was already well on his way to greatness in their eyes. His upbringing and coaching was hardly any different to any kids in that continent, or even over in Europe. A pretty normal Argentinian football obsessed upbringing for a kid by the sounds of it. He just always seemed *better*, and that's from the people who could take the credit for his development if they wanted to. Maybe it's his desire, but I think it's that and a natural aptitude that stemmed from his exceptional pace, balance and sharpness he inherited. Honed by playing, yeah of course, but fuck me, I never stopped playing football as a kid, like countless others, and I just never moved anywhere near as confidently as he did and does.
Some people are just better at things. Doesn't bother me, it's just life. He was obviously taught better too, but I highly doubt he's the only football obsessed kid to have that same level of quality coaching exposure...he obviously isn't. Bearing that in mind, there should be thousands upon thousands of mini messis around the age of 13 too, the age that Barca signed him. There wasn't then, and there aren't now either. Messi was special.
Some kids are walking by 6 months, some are sat on their arse until 20 months, through no fault of a parent's. Some people react quicker, some kids have better motor skills off the bat. I don't really think that's up for debate, and it's pretty obvious that that would help a kid be better at football. Messi almost certainly had exceptional motor skills and reaction times from the off - if he didn't he wouldn't have been wow'ing people that quickly.