Lionel Messi showcases romantic side on wife Antonela Roccuzzo's birthday

Soccer superstar Lionel Messi showed his romantic side by sharing an adorable snap of himself and his wife Antonela Roccuzzo on her birthday, which he posted on social media.

This comes just a day after he made headlines for his legendary first goal of 2024 that levelled Inter Miami’s Major League Soccer (MLS) clash against the Los Angeles Galaxy, rescuing them from losing their spot in the season.

The 36-year-old Argentinian took to Instagram to share a message of love to his childhood sweetheart, as he publicly told her: "Happy Birthday, Princess! I love you @antonelarocuzzo."

In the birthday picture, Messi and his wife are joined by their three children — Thiago, 11, Matteo, 8, and Ciro, 5 — as they pose in front of colourful balloons, a cardboard sign of Pocahontas, and a wall sticker with the words "Happy Birthday Anto".

"Un ano mas viejita," Roccuzzo, now 36, wrote as a caption to her Instagram post of family photos, which directly translates to "one year older" in English.

The family can be seen blowing candles on a cake together, making for a heartwarming birthday celebration.

Inter Miami owner David Beckham’s wife Victoria Beckham also wished Roccuzzo a happy birthday on Instagram, sharing a picture of them both from what seems to be a girls’ lunch.

Messi scored a 92nd-minute goal to save a 1-1 draw against the Galaxy in LA, avoiding the first loss of the new Major League Soccer (MLS) season with Inter Miami.

He scored after executing a pass sequence with Jordi Alba, who he previously played with at Barcelona.

The goal was a thrilling moment for the raucous crowd, with 27,642 in attendance, setting a record for a Galaxy regular-season match at their suburban stadium.

Next up for Messi and his team is an in-state away game against rival, Orlando City, on Saturday.