Luka Romero: Five things you need to know about the 'new Messi'

A 15-year-old has written himself into the history books by becoming the youngest ever footballer to play in the Spanish top division.

He's called Luka Romero and he came off the subs bench for Mallorca in their 2-0 loss to La Liga giants Real Madrid.

The winger - who has drawn comparisons with Lionel Messi - broke an appearance record that was 80 years old.

Here are five things you need to know about the next big thing in football.

Argentina (via Mexico)

Romero (pictured) wants to play for Argentina

Even though he was born in Mexico, Romero's whole family are Argentinean - just like Messi.

His dad was a professional footballer and it was because of this that Romero and the rest of his family moved to Spain when he was just three.

He has a Spanish passport and it means that Romero is allowed to play for Argentina, Mexico and Spain.

However, the indications so far suggest he wants to stick to his heritage and play for Argentina because he's already played for the country at junior level.

Barcelona

The Camp Nou (pictured) is the home of Spanish giants, Barcelona.

Barcelona are already aware of his considerable talent and even tried to sign Romero when he was just seven years old.

At the time, Romero's family weren't willing to relocate to Barcelona from Ibiza so the move never materialised.

Instead, Romero signed an eight-year youth deal with RCD Mallorca - who play a lot closer to where his family were based - at the age of 10.

Breaking new ground

According to local media reports, in just four years, Romero scored a staggering 230 times in just 108 matches for Mallorca's youth team.

Mallorca's assistant coach, Dani Pendin said that he'd been aware of Romero's promise from the age of 12.

The only reason he wasn't promoted to the first team earlier was because he wasn't big enough physically for the men's game.

Romero stands at just five foot five.

Messi

Lots of people think Romero could be the new Messi (pictured)

Romero is short in stature, plays on the wing, is known for his close control and uses his dribbling skills to glide past players. Remind you of anyone else?

Yep, a lot of people say Luka Romero reminds them of Lionel Messi.

Coincidentally, Romero's debut even fell on Messi's 33rd birthday.

It's not just casual fans who think they're similar too, just ask Messi's former team mate Dani Alves. At 12 years old, Romero was spotted playing football on a beach in Ibiza by the former Barcelona full-back.

When fans gathered to get a picture with Alves, he told them: "Take pictures of him, not me - he's the new Messi".

However, Romero's coach Dani Pendin says he shares more in common with Manchester City's David Silva rather than Messi.

History

When Romero stepped on the pitch against Real Madrid, he became the youngest ever player to feature in the Spanish first division.

At just 15 years and 219 days old, he broke a record that was 80 years old.

The record was previously held by a footballer called Sanson who was 15 years and 255 days old when he made his debut for Celta Vigo in 1939. He went on to play 200 professional games in Spain in a career that lasted until the 1956 season.