Karetsas No.19 Tribute Reflects Deep Messi Admiration
Borussia Dortmund’s newest signing, Konstantinos Karetsas, has chosen the No.19 shirt in a deliberate nod to his idol, Lionel Messi. Although the club’s storied No.10 jersey was available to him, the 18-year-old opted instead for the number Messi wore during his early breakthrough years at Barcelona and with Argentina. According to media reports, the Karetsas No.19 tribute stems from years of studying Messi’s footage as a child and trying to mirror his movements in training.
There are genuine similarities between the two players. Both are left-footed, and Karetsas stands at 1.73 metres, just three centimetres taller than Messi. Like his idol, the young Greek midfielder operates best in tight spaces and often drifts in from the right flank to combine, dribble past defenders, or shoot on goal. Consequently, comparisons to Messi’s early career have followed him since his move to Germany.
Karetsas No.19 Tribute Comes Amid Early Dortmund Buzz
Dortmund paid Genk around 30 million euros for Karetsas this summer, making him the club’s second-most expensive signing behind Ousmane Dembele. Despite joining only recently, he has already made an impression. During a pre-season friendly against Arsenal, Karetsas scored a spectacular strike within half an hour of coming on, helping Dortmund to a 3-2 win. Goalkeeper Gregor Kobel praised the teenager’s quality after watching footage of the goal, calling him a player with real talent in the dressing room.
Born in Genk, Belgium, Karetsas ultimately chose to represent Greece internationally rather than Belgium, and he has already scored three goals in ten appearances for the senior national team. As he settles into life at Dortmund, expectations are rising fast. Still, for a player who grew up idolising Messi, wearing the same number his hero once wore feels like a fitting first step toward carving out his own legacy in yellow and black.
