Footballers and their childhood idols, including Lionel Messi, Sergio Aguero and Paul Pogba's heroes

When Matt Le Tissier found out Barcelona icon Xavi looked up to him as a child, the Southampton legend had a t-shirt specially, which read: 'Xavi loves me'.

The admiration stems from a Spanish television show dedicated to the weekend's best Premier League goals shown every Monday and, naturally, featured Le Tissier on a regular basis.

"I'm talking outrageous, sickening goals," Xavi said of the finishes.

REVEALED: Footballers who played for their boyhood club's rivals

Here, talkSPORT.com looks at other footballers and their biggest childhood idols, including Lionel Messi's hero, the influence of Tottenham on Dennis Bergkamp and who Cristiano Ronaldo looks up to.

You can even find out which Premier League legend's shirt Dimitar Berbatov slept in.

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