TThe Leo Messi effect has once again proven its effectiveness with the Argentine becoming the owner of UE Corneja, the team next to RCD Espanyol in the city of Barcelona. Despite being a team from Tercera RFEF (Spanish 5th division), the modest squad of Argentine stars has already managed to surpass their historic opponents FC Barcelona on Instagram.
In just a few days, the number of followers on UE Cornella’s account soared to 565,000, while Espanyol’s account had 549,000. This reflects the effect that Leo Messi, who was acquired for a fee close to $2.5 million according to some reports, could have on the club. In just 24 hours, the account went from 2,000 followers to 330,000. Three days later, that number is already over 500,000 and is expected to rise further.
A few days ago, the club’s coach, Ignasi Senabre, commented on the importance of Messi joining the club. “It’s a feeling of happiness and pride. After all, the greatest player of all time has set his sights on the club. That’s the advantage of what has been done at the club in recent years. We are very excited, but we have to focus on what we can control, that is what we are here for and we have to be professional,” he said.
One of the pillars of this project is grassroots soccer, which allows UE Cornell to retain and grow as a reference for the development of future top-level players, as well as those it has already produced throughout its history of success.
