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Lionel Messi has changed his hair colour from his natural black to blonde
The new look didn't go down too well with his millions of adorning fans
He has cut his holiday short to prepare for the new La Liga with Barcelona
The 29-year-old could play against Liverpool at Wembley on August 6

Published: 08:47 EDT, 24 July 2016 | Updated: 10:39 EDT, 25 July 2016

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Lionel Messi hasn't enjoyed the best of summers. He was part of the Argentina side that lost in the Copa America final for the second consecutive year while Cristiano Ronaldo won Euro 2016 with Portugal - and now he's plumped for a quite loud haircut.

The Barcelona star's new look was revealed by his wife Antonella on her Instagram page and unsurprisingly the reaction was mixed.

Rather than stick with his natural hair colour of brown, as he has done for the majority of his decorated career, the 29-year-old decided to bleach his hair blonde.

Lionel Messi revealed his new haircut on his wife Antonella's Instagram account on Sunday afternoon

Comparisons were made with the haircuts of Aaron Ramsey (top right), Phil Jones (bottom right) and Samir Nasri

Antonella used the caption '#blondeboy' yet she probably didn't expect such a high number of his adorning fans who certainly weren't as impressed as she was.

The common comparison to made was with Arsenal and Wales midfielder Aaron Ramsey who sported a similar hairstyle at Euro 2016. Others likened him more to Manchester United's Phil Jones or Manchester City's Samir Nasri.

Messi has been on holiday with his family after being granted extended leave by Barcelona following the Copa America in the United States.

It proved to be a difficult tournament for him as he reached the final with Argentina only to lose to Chile 4-2 on penalties. He announced his international retirement following that defeat.

Wales and Arsenal midfielder Ramsey bleached his hair blonde for this summer's European Championship

He was supposed to remain on holiday until the start of August in order for him to get as much rest as possible ahead of the new campaign but he will travel with his club team-mates to England this week.

Barcelona manager Luis Enrique has named Messi in his 25-man travelling squad that will take part in a training camp at St George's Park, the FA's national football centre.

He could also feature in their pre-season friendly against Liverpool at Wembley on August 6.