New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani admits he could not quite believe the viral photo of Lionel Messi and Lamine Yamal is real.
On Sunday, soccer legend Messi looks to win the second World Cup of his career. Standing in his way, however, is the teenage Yamal – the player many believe is the Argentine’s heir.
Yamal has emerged as a truly generational talent in recent years, stepping into the void Messi left at Barcelona.
Lionel Messi & Lamine Yamal are the stars of their nations but aside from them, who could be a matchwinner in the World Cup final and why?
There will therefore be a clash of generations when Messi’s Argentina meet Yamal’s Spain in New Jersey on Sunday in the biggest game soccer has to offer.
Ahead of the game, a photo of Messi bathing Yamal more than 18 years ago has gone viral.
Mamdani, who is confident in his ability to spot AI images when they appear, was surprised it was real.
Mamdani thought viral Messi-Yamal photo was an AI construct
Asked for his prediction ahead of Sunday’s final, Mamdani gave the fittingly diplomatic answer of not backing either team before expressing his desire to see a good game.
He did then add that the photo of Messi and Yamal was so surprising to him that he believed it had been created by artificial intelligence.
Mamdani said: “As someone who likes to think of myself as technologically fluent and able to spot AI versus a real image, I thought that the image of Lionel Messi and Lamine Yamal was AI.
“I don’t know if you’ve seen this image, but Lamine Yamal was picked out of a number of different children for a photo to be bathed by Lionel Messi when he was a child.
“There’s a photo of Lionel Messi and Lamine Yamal as a baby being bathed in the bathtub and now those two are going to face off this Sunday in New York City and New Jersey and it’s pretty incredible.”
It is difficult to believe the photo is real, even though it very much is.
The photo seemed too perfect long before the World Cup final was set. To have the greatest player FC Barcelona have ever had almost baptizing the player who could grow into his heir is symbolic on so many levels.
Messi has rolled back the years during the World Cup, playing as if he’s not approaching his 40th birthday.
It has been a slower tournament for Yamal after the teenager suffered an injury towards the end of Barca’s domestic season, but he has undoubtedly produced some good moments.
Everything points to an absolutely fascinating final on Sunday.
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