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When Argentina defeated Mexico 2-0 with Lionel Messi scoring the opening goal, a father wasn’t about to let his blind son miss out – so he held the 12-year-old's hand and walked him through the goal.
The heartwarming clip of their tender interaction went viral on Instagram with more than 290 000 likes.
Dressed in the Argentinian soccer shirt, Sebastian Filoramo sits opposite his dad, Manuel Nuñez, who holds his hands and guides it across a replica of the pitch in front of them, mimicking Messi's movements.
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As Messi scores, Sebastian's dad moves his hands towards the goal on the board and the boy throws his hands up and tosses his cap to the side as he erupts into cheers of complete joy.
In Spanish, the video caption reads, "It's not necessary to see to live the passion of soccer. Thank you Messi for giving me these special moments."
The father's love and support, as well as the way Sebastian's face glowed with happiness when the superstar scored, touched many hearts.
“I'm Mexican, the defeat hurt but what a joy to see you enjoy, greetings!” one user commented.
Many people were also calling for Messi to see the video.
“What a blessing of a boy and a million blessings for that father. I'm Cuban and I'd love for someone to send this video to Messi,” someone wrote.
Sebastian, who lives in the city of Barquisimeto, also takes part in collecting world cup stickers by adding Braille labels to his sticker album with the help of his parents and teachers to try to make soccer more accessible to those who are vision-impaired.
"My dad is a genius, he thinks of everything," says Sebastian, who was born blind. "He told me, 'Do you want to fill the album? Then let's get it adapted.'"
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As a collector, his discovery of Argentine soccer legend Messi's picture in a pack of stickers was his most thrilling find to date.
“I feel super happy to be able to be part of the fever of this world cup. Remember that not only those who see it live it," Sebastian says.
Sources: dailymail.com, khaleejtimes.com, instgram.com, reuters.com, bluradio.com
