With Barcelona in town to play Chelsea in the Champions League, Gary Lineker seized the opportunity to pay his old team a visit at their hotel in London.
Lineker, who scored 42 goals in 102 games during his stint in Catalonia, met with several members of the current squad, including Luis Suarez and the one and only Lionel Messi.
🎬 Així va ser la trobada de #Messi i @GaryLineker ahir a l'arribada de l'equip a Londres.
Descobreix la prèvia del #ChelseaBarça des de dins: https://t.co/5d9YRhgcCN pic.twitter.com/WEE1jOUIdX— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona_cat) February 20, 2018
Lineker and his sons Harry and Tobias shook hands with Messi, enjoyed a brief chat (in Spanish), posed for photos and even got a shirt or two signed for posterity's sake.
What a day, what a man. The GOAT of all GOATS 🐐🐐. Gracias @leomessi Kids if you are going to meet your idol, don't wear a grey T-Shirt 😂 #Togo
"Gracias Leo! What a day, what a man. The GOAT [greatest of all time] of all GOATS," Harry enthused on Instagram after meeting his idol before adding: "Kids if you are going to meet your idol, don't wear a grey T-Shirt."
Perhaps it was the nervous excitement of meeting the Argentina legend, or just the heating inside the hotel.
Messi and his Barca teammates are set to square off against Chelsea again on Tuesday night in the first leg of their round-of-16 tie at Stamford Bridge.