Idolised for his immense on-field skills, four-time World Footballer of the Year Lionel Messi's squeaky-clean image off the pitch will be scrutinised on Friday when he faces a judge accused of tax evasion.
The Argentine and father Jorge are due in court in Gava near Barcelona, accused of evading tax on Messi's image rights worth 4.15 million euros ($A6 million) from 2006-09.
Despite the case, the Barcelona forward has scored 10 goals in seven matches as the Spanish champions remain unbeaten.
"I am not worried. I'm always on the sidelines of all that, just like my dad. We have our lawyers and our advisors who handle these things. We trust in them and they will solve the issue," he said back in July.
The case began in June when a prosecutor accused the Messis of evading tax by ceding the image rights of the player to "purely instrumental entities" in tax havens like Belize and Uruguay.
Prosecutor say Messi "obtained significant income" from the rights on which he "should have paid tax in his subsequent declarations" and never did.
A week later, a judge accepted the footballer and his father had a case to answer.
Although the offences can attract jail terms, the Messis paid tax authorities five million euros ($A7.25 million) in August which will significantly reduce any sentence if they are found guilty.
The news caused astonishment in Spain where Messi is regarded as a more humble figure than other stars, particularly Real Madrid rival Cristiano Ronaldo.
"Messi is a very good player and he doesn't have a conflicting image. Rather, he has a very professional image, of being focused on what he does and very close to the public," says Carles Canto of IMG Consulting.
Enric Baneres, journalist for Catalan daily La Vanguardia, says: "Tax evasion is something so common in Spain like the siesta or paella that the people are very permissive with it.
"A fan doesn't want to criticise their idols, so they are used to excusing them or putting the blame on someone else."
The player's defence seems set to try to exonerate him and point the finger at former agent Rodolfo Schinocca.
According to a document sent by Messi's father to the court, Schinocca was in charge of organising the "structure and management" of the income from Messi's image rights.
However, Schinocca said he had nothing to do with the case because he stopped working with the Messis in 2006 and accused Jorge Messi of wanting an off-shore account to manage the image income.
From 2007-09, Lionel earned more than 10.17 million euros ($A14.8 million) in image rights, while Forbes magazine rates him the world's 10th highest-paid sportsman making $US21 million ($A22.5 million) annually from endorsements alone.
