Newell's Old Boys confirm Lionel Messi's father and agent Jorge has passed away

[p]Argentinian media reported [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/messi-lionel/vgOOdZbd/"]Jorge Messi[/a] had passed away on Friday in a hospital in Rosario.[/p][p][b]"His constant companionship and behind-the-scenes leadership were essential in backing every step of Lionel,"[/b] [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/newells-old-boys/6gMiRHVj/"]Newell's Old Boys[/a] said in a social media post.[/p][embed guid="c7743588-b7b9-40bd-9e90-fe1f04e682bf" url="https://x.com/Newells/status/2086078622620651934" social-type="twitter" /][p]Jorge Messi was his son's first coach in Argentina and his sole companion when he first moved to Barcelona as a child, before later becoming his agent.[/p][p][b]"My father helped me enormously. He is very critical of me. That made me always want to push myself further,"[/b] Lionel Messi told DirecTV Sports in 2022.[/p][p]Messi's family asked the media for "humanity" during the recent World Cup amid persistent rumours over Jorge's health.[/p]