On social media, a photo purportedly showing Lionel Messi with Pau Cubarsi and Joan Garcia has begun to circulate
The picture of Lionel Messi and Pau Cubarsi shows a comparatively young Messi lying for a photo shoot with a happy infant next to him.
Is the photo of footballer Lionel Messi with a young Joan Garcia and baby Pau Cubarsi real or fake
Some Barcelona supporters think the picture of Lionel Messi with Pau Cubarsi is real as the Barcelona player allegedly himself said in a comment that it’s him with Leo. However, it appears that some people have made up the whole thing to further this narrative.
Messi with Joan Garcia, Pau Cubarsi and Lamine Yamal. Messi's generational influence is unreal, man. pic.twitter.com/um3LwrVAnL
— FCB Fanatic (@FCBFanatic_) June 11, 2025
The widely shared image purports to capture a young Pau Cubarsi posing with Lionel Messi during his formative years at FC Barcelona. Fans have expressed a mixture of amazement and cynicism in response to the image, which has been extensively circulated on social media. Given that Cubarsi is now a star on the same team as his idol, many fans have publicly referred to it as a “full circle moment.”
However, the photograph is most likely phony or misattributed, even though it claims depicts a touching and complete event. There is currently no proof that Messi and Cubarsi were pictured together as children or that Cubarsi acknowledged being the infant next to Messi, despite the fact that the photo went viral and caused excitement.
Similarly, another picture of a young Joan Garcia with Messi has gone viral as well with it claimed that the goalkeeper admitted it was Messi with him in the now viral photo. However, this claim is false as well with the kid alongside Messi in the picture not being Garcia.
Joan Garcia. pic.twitter.com/flKf5na1vJ
— Stop That Messi (@stopthatmessiii) June 11, 2025
Who is Pau Cubarsi?
The young and promising football player Pau Cubarsi Paredes was born in Girona, Spain, on January 22, 2007. He primarily plays center back for the Spanish national team and FC Barcelona, a La Liga team. His height is 1.84 meters, and he is currently 18 years old. After enrolling in Barcelona’s junior system in 2022, Pau transferred to Barcelona Atletic in 2023 and made his senior debut there in 2024.
Cubarsí made his first team debut on January 18, 2024, when he was substituted in the 46th minute of the Copa del Rey match against Unionistas de Salamanca. A day before his seventeenth birthday, he made his La Liga debut in the following game against Real Betis.
Two months later, on March 12, he won Player of the Match for his UEFA Champions League debut in a 3-1 victory over Napoli in the second leg of the round of 16. He broke the previous record of former Bayern Munich defender David Alaba, who was 17 years and 258 days old, to become the youngest player to debut in the competition’s knockout phase.