A fan was so hellbent on getting Lionel Messi's attention ... he rushed the pitch during a match between Maccabi Haifa and Paris Saint-Germain, running up to the soccer star at midfield, and hugging him!
The funny/scary moment happened Wednesday at Sammy Ofer Stadium in Israel ... when a man wearing a black shirt and blue jeans hopped the wall during the UEFA Champions League Match in an effort to reach the 35-year-old legend.
Video shows the fan -- who lost one of his shoes in the process -- nearly taking a nasty spill as nearby security attempted to grab the fan. The dude got away (security, out of frustration, threw the shoe at him 😄) ... and ran full speed at the players on the field.
The guy ran past several players, and made a beeline for Messi, hugging him.
Messi -- who was caught off guard -- halfway embraced the intruder ... before being mobbed by security.
As he was being subdued, many fans booed the guy for disrupting the match. Fortunately, no one was seriously injured during the fiasco.