Kolkata, the city of joy is reeling under Messi mania. When Lionel Messi, arguably one of the biggest soccer players of all time landed in Kolkata on wee hours of Wednesday, the airport was thronged with thousands of supporters waiting to catch a glimpse of their star. But to their disappointment, Messi was taken from out from a separate lobby straight into the team bus which then headed towards the hotel. Realizing this, several fans on their bikes and cars chased the bus and police had to intervene to stop the fans.

It is to be noted that Argentina take on Venezuela in a friendly match on Friday at the Salt Lake Stadium. This will be the first friendly FIFA match in India and quite understandably the craze and the excitement among soccer fans in the city is on a high. Even Argentine journalists are overwhelmed by seeing the number of Argentine supporters in the city. Both the teams have been given tight security to prevent any untoward incident.