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Messi's father dies in Argentina after long illness
['Aug', 'Anna Harrington', 'Aap Newswire', 'Bree Harding', 'Thomas Beattie', 'Brynne Timewell']
Shepparton News Feed
Lionel Messi spent time with his father after the World Cup in North America before rejoining his club Inter Miami, for whom he returned to action a week ago.
Jorge closely accompanied Lionel throughout his career, beginning with his early years at Barcelona.
After every match, I'd ask him what he thought of how I played," the 39-year-old had said previously.
Later, at a press conference, Lionel explained that his tears were due to "something unrelated to football" after going through "a few difficult, complicated days".
Days later, the family issued a statement regarding Jorge's "health situation", informing the public that he was undergoing medical treatment.