Lionel Messi's father insists his son has always remained grounded throughout his career as he marks the 10th anniversary of his Barcelona debut on Thursday.
Messi came off the bench for Barca during their clash against Espanyol at the age of just 17, and has since gone on a meteoric rise to become one of the greatest players the world has ever seen.
The 27-year-old is now a four-time World Player of the Year and his 361 goals from 434 games have inspired his club to 21 trophies, including six La Liga titles and three Champions League crowns.
The Argentina captain can break yet another record on Saturday when Barcelona face Eibar as he lies just two off Telmo Zarra's six-decade-old La Liga scoring record of 251 goals.
Yet despite all the success and accolades that have come his way -- and the criticism that has sometimes accompanied it -- Jorge Messi says his son has not let any of it go to his head.
"There are times when there is too much praise and other moments when the criticism is excessive," he told Cadena Cope. "You have to stop somewhere in the middle and simply look forward.
"He reads and listens to everyone and I don't know how he does it but he doesn't attach much importance to either the good or the bad.
"People don't know him. He is a very normal lad, like any other. He spends time with his family, he has fun, he tries to enjoy life. He isn't any different."
Meanwhile, Jorge Messi was at pains to stress that his son has had nothing to do with his own tax affairs which have led to an investigation into alleged fraud.
Messi and his father have been accused of defrauding the Spanish state of more than 4 million euros by filing incomplete returns for the years 2007 to 2009.
The pair have denied any wrongdoing, and Jorge Messi is adamant his son should not be included in the ongoing investigation.
"In actual fact I want to be quite cautious over this [topic]," he said. "I have always said it, he had absolutely nothing to do with it, so there is no need to talk about it. My lawyers are dealing with this issue so it's something with me and has nothing to do with him."
In the phone interview, Jorge Messi reiterated from his home in Argentina that his son could return to Rosario in the twilight of his career.
"He loves Barca but you never know, life takes many turns. He loves Rosario, this club [Newells] and this city, which he made his home. I don't know, life takes many turns. I see players at 34 or 35 perform better than when they were young."
Jorge Messi also said the arrival of Luis Suarez will help Barcelona step up their game and added that the rivalry with Real Madrid star Cristiano Ronaldo helps football.
"What will grow will be collaboration," he said of Suarez's presence. "There are great players in this club and his arrival will make the team stronger and all will think about collaborating more.
"