A year ago today, Argentina, first beaten by Saudi Arabia, kicked off its 2022 World Cup with a victory against Mexico. Lionel Messi then attracted the wrath of all the Mexican people by wiping his feet on a Tri jersey.
“Muchachos, ahora nos volvimos a illusionar” (friends, now we’re starting to dream again), the heady anthem of the Argentina supporters was taken up for long minutes by all the Albiceleste players in the locker room, after the victory against Mexico (2 -0), on November 26, 2022 at the World Cup in Qatar. The real start of the epic of the Argentinians, who lost from the start against Saudi Arabia (1-2).
During this moment of madness in the bowels of the Lusail Stadium, filmed by TV cameras, Lionel Messi, not content with singing words about himself, was caught wiping his crampons on a Mexican jersey that he had recovered at the whistle of the match and which he had left on the ground once he returned to the locker room.
Mexican affection is based on the jersey of #Messi #Argentina 🇦🇷 and you love it with the shirt #Mexico 🇲🇽that is on the shoe. pic.twitter.com/j9PcnAo3WT
— Uriel Chacon | (@DimeChacon_) November 27, 2022
All of Mexico then cried foul over this lack of respect from “La Pulga”, who had opened the scoring by beating Guillermo Ochoa (Enzo Fernandez had doubled the lead). Boxer Canelo Alvarez even threatened the Ballon d’Or record holder. “Let him pray to God that I don’t cross him. I respect Argentina but Argentina must also respect Mexico”, he wrote, before deleting his publication.