As the sun went down on a balmy evening at Nou Camp, a star was born By DONALD WALKER Published on Thursday 22 March 2012 05:18 THERE was more of a drift than a rush as spectators made their way to the Nou Camp on a balmy May evening seven years ago. If the atmosphere could hardly be described as electric that Sunday night, the low-key feel was understandable. Barcelona were at home to Albacete, a fixture which wasn't quite El Clasico. Nevertheless, the promise of witnessing genuine superstars in the flesh quickened the pace. Plaques on the stadium wall celebrated Barcelona greats, although spray paint had been used to obliterate the name of Luis Figo, who had betrayed fans by joining Real Madrid. No-one was missing him now, not in a team featuring Ronaldinho, Samuel Eto'o, Andres Iniesta, Deco and Carles Puyol. The late evening sunshine drenched half the stadium seats, and heads began to loll during the first half as the heat and the lack of tempo in the game itself would have made it possible to nod off, had our party not been positioned in front of a young lad not yet of broken voice who might well have been a native but had not developed his vocabulary beyond "Olé," hollered every time the ball was kicked. By either team. In the second half, proceedings were enlivened when Eto'o scored from 20 yards in the 66th minute. We all agreed it was a fantastic strike, although, in truth, only half of us were alert enough to see it coming. The next 20 minutes were a test of endurance, although the sun began to take its leave, mercifully, and there was a brief flurry of excitement when the attendance flashed up as a remarkable 90,000. What followed in the closing minutes was utterly unexpected and an experience that none of those present should forget. On the 88-minute mark, Eto'o was removed, presumably to earn him an ovation as the match-winner. On came 17-year-old Lionel Messi, his first team appearance at such a tender age seemingly achievement enough. That surely explained why the stadium came alive so suddenly. But as the buzz endured, it became clear that what was in the air was a sense of anticipation. In no time at all, Messi was on the end of a sublime Ronaldinho pass to send the ball over the Albacete goalkeeper and into the net with an audacious piece of skill. It seemed too fantastic to be true, and sure enough it was. The goal was chalked off because a team-mate was offside. Yet moments later, we blinked as Ronaldinho again landed the ball on Messi's left foot and the teenager lifted the ball delicately over the "keeper in a repeat of his disallowed goal. This one counted, and the stadium erupted. The final whistle sounded, and a game that had only just come to life was over already. But the story had just begun.