One time, Lionel Messi disclosed that he had the intention of “humiliating” an opponent while they were competing in the World Cup.
Messi, who is 37 years old, is not known for his aggressive playing style or his trash talking. When he is on the football pitch, Messi typically uses his feet to communicate with his teammates.
But one particular footballer was so irritating to Messi that he admitted that he “ignored him” during a game because he was “angry.” Messi was referring to the fact that the footballer was very angry.
During the 2022 World Cup, which was held in Qatar, the match in question was between Poland and Argentina, which was part of Group C.
In light of the fact that Argentina’s primary competitors in the sport of football are Brazil, Mexico, England, and the Netherlands, you might be wondering why Messi experienced such a great deal of irritation from a Polish player.
Iconic forward Robert Lewandowski was the star of the Polish team, and despite the fact that he typically comes to life in the final third, he attempted to dislodge Messi before offering a friendly hand to the eight-time winner of the Ballon d’Or.
However, Messi did not accept his gesture and quickly walked away from him. After some time had passed, he admitted that the statement that Lewandowski made after the 2021 Ballon d’Or ceremony, which Messi had won, “bothered” him emotionally.
Despite scoring 40 goals in the Bundesliga in just 29 games for Bayern Munich during the 2020/21 season, Lewandowski, who is 36 years old, finished in second place in the competition for the award. This accomplishment broke the record that Gerd Muller had held for the most goals scored in a calendar year for the past 49 years.
When Messi was presented with the Ballon d’Or in 2021, he was quick to express his admiration for the Pole. Messi even went so far as to suggest that the Pole should have been awarded the award in 2020, when the award was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Lewandowski, on the other hand, made the observation that Messi’s statement was “empty words.”
According to a statement that Lewandowski gave to Kanale Sportowym in 2021, he said, “I would like it [Messi’s statement for the 2020 Ballon d’Or] to be a sincere and courteous statement from a great player and not just empty words.”
After a year had passed, the legendary Argentine player shared his thoughts and disclosed the manner in which he purposefully dribbled at Lewandowski while he was competing in the World Cup.
Messi told ESPN in December 2022, “Lewandowski’s statement in 2021 bothered me because when I won the Ballon d’Or, I said what I really felt.” Messi expressed his feelings about the statement.
As a result of the fact that it was him, I chose to ignore him during the game. I was upset with him and believed that he should not have said what he said. That made me very angry. Is it possible that I was dribbling on purpose because it was him? It is true.”
According to Messi, “After that, we got together and talked, and we came to the conclusion that it was a misunderstanding.” The fact that what he said did not correspond to what was reported caused him to feel upset.
“Then he went to Barcelona, and we talked about many things about the club, the city and everything.”
