A 21-metre (70ft) golden-coloured statue of football superstar Lionel Messi in Kolkata, eastern India, is set to be removed after it was deemed unsafe and found to be swaying in the wind.

West Bengal state legislator Sharadwat Mukherjee told AFP that engineers from the state government had inspected the statue and declared it hazardous. 'We have noticed that the statue is swaying in the wind,' he said.

The statue, depicting the 38-year-old Argentina and Inter Miami forward lifting the World Cup trophy, was unveiled during Messi's GOAT Tour of India in December.

Workers were seen on Wednesday throwing ropes around the statue's shoulders to secure it, but Mukherjee said removal has proved difficult and no date has been set. It is unclear if the statue will be re-erected elsewhere.

India, a cricket powerhouse, ranks 142nd in FIFA rankings, but football is the country's second-favourite sport, according to recent Nielsen data.

Source: www.aljazeera.com