Lionel Messi’s bodyguard Yassine Cheuko is a man on a singular mission, sticking to the Miami man like glue during the team’s pre-season tour of Asia… he’s clearly not messing around.
Football, or for the sake of this article, soccer, is having a profound moment in the U.S. From record-breaking viewership across the MLS last season to exponential growth in social media following for the league, American soccer fans have gone all in on their new love for the world’s game.
This is thanks, in part, to Lionel Messi who made waves across the world when he opted to join David Beckham and his fresh-faced franchise, Inter Miami. The Florida-based side has gone from strength to strength since its debut season in the MLS almost four years ago, introducing a new wave of talent to launch a bid for its maiden title… and this year’s team is stacked with some of football’s greatest ever stars.
WATCH Lionel Messi is unveiled as an Inter Miami player for the first time in front of 65,000 fans below.
But of course, when you sign, arguably, football’s greatest-ever player, it’s only natural that you would want to protect your star man. And so, Inter Miami introduced Yassine Cheuko, a former U.S. Navy Seal to patrol the touchline and watch over the team’s greatest asset.
It’s been reported that David Beckham has assigned a team of 50 members, led by Cheuko, who work round the clock to ensure the personal safety of the seven-time Ballon d’Or winner, especially during matches… and recent images show just how seriously Cheuko takes his duties.
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In a pre-season friendly between Inter Miami and a Hong Kong XI, Lionel Messi was forced to spend the game sitting on the bench, much to the frustration of the home and travelling support. But even though the Argentinian forward was taking a much-needed break, the same couldn’t be said for his faithful protector, who stuck to Messi like glue for the entire match.