For many young football fans from around the world, their most endearing dream is to one day meet Lionel Messi and Neymar da Silva Santos Jr., the star strikers of the stellar Futbol Club Barcelona team of La Liga in Spain. After all, Argentinian Messi and Brazilian Neymar are widely considered to be the closest embodiments to football legends Diego Armando Maradona and Pelé.

Such was the dream of Gabriel Enrique, a young FC Barcelona fan from Costa Rica who was on his way to meet Messi and Neymar. Little Gabriel was really close to meeting the football stars; sadly, he did not make it. Prior to embarking on the trip that would make his dream come true, Gabriel was under the medical supervision of the terminal care unit of the National Children’s Hospital in San Jose. He suffered from terminal cancer, and his parents and relatives arranged for his trip to Spain by coordinating with FC Barcelona Foundation, which works closely with the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF).

According to an official communique by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Embassy of Costa Rica in Spain, Gabriel passed away on the flight across the Atlantic. Gabriel was from Cañas in Guanacaste, and he was looking forward to celebrating his ninth birthday, which would have taken place weeks after his meeting with Messi and Neymar.

The Consul of Costa Rica in Spain has given support and assistance to Gabriel’s parents in this moment of deep sorrow. The parents decided to cremate the body the FC Barcelona Foundation and the star players have extended their condolences to the family. The community of Ticos living in Spain arranged for a memorial service at the Parrish of San Juan de la Cruz, located close to the Embassy in Madrid.

Football fans of a certain age know that we are living in momentous times. As mentioned before, Messi and Neymar are some of the most exciting strikers to grace the pitch since Maradona and O Rei Pelé did in their respective times. We know that jogo bonito is making a comeback, and that professional football in Costa Rica is living one of its most illustrious moments.

We, as fans, are living in an era of great joy in terms of football glory on a global level, and this is the time during which little Gabriel lived; this much is evident by his desire to meet Messi and Neymar, who would have surely loved to meet him. FC Barcelona and the world of football have lost a dear fan, and for this The Costa Rica Star extends its deepest condolences.

Additional source: Pablo Rojas of CRHoy.com