Lionel Messi delivered a brutal response to Rodrygo after the Brazil star branded the Argentina squad as cowards.
On Tuesday night, arch-rivals Argentina and Brazil faced off at the Maracana stadium in Rio de Janeiro.
Before the match even got underway, there were shocking scenes within the stands as fans clashed with local police.
Argentina goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez was seen trying to calm things down before Messi led his teammates back into the changing room.
Advert
The reigning world champions eventually sealed a 1-0 win over Brazil thanks to a 63rd-minute goal from Nicolas Otamendi.
Prior to kickoff, Messi was seen having words with Brazil and Real Madrid forward Rodrygo.
The pair were involved in what looked like a heated conversation before their teammates separated them.
According to Argentine media outlet TyC Sports, Rodrygo told Messi and Rodrigo de Paul that they were cowards for heading back into the dressing room after the crowd violence.
In response, Messi delivered a brutal reply. According to the report, the seven-time Ballon d’Or winner said: “We are the world champions, why are we cowards? Look at your mouth.”
After the match, Messi took to social media to express his displeasure regarding the crowd trouble.
He wrote on Instagram: “Tonight we made history but it’s important to say that it’ll be marked by the repression of Brazilians against Argentinians once again. It can’t be accepted. It’s madness. It has to stop immediately.”
The 36-year-old also launched an attack on the police during his post-match interview.
He said: “We saw how [police] were hitting the people, it already happened in the Libertadores final. They were more focused on that than on the game.
“We went to the locker room because it was the best way to calm everything down, a tragedy could have happened.”
Messi added: “We are a family. We decided to play to make the situation more calm.”
Topics: Lionel Messi, Rodrygo, Argentina, Brazil, Football
Marcus Chan