Faced with general anger from Asian supporters, Leo Messi returns to the Hong Kong incident

Leo Messi s'apprête à débuter sa saison en MLS. MAXPPP – Javier Vicencio/Eyepix Group/Avalon

La non-participation de Lionel Messi lors du match amical de l'Inter Miami face à Hong-Kong le 4 février dernier avait créé une grande polémique dans le pays. Le concerné dément tout geste politique. 

Lionel Messi reiterated that his non-participation in a friendly match in early February in Hong Kong, which had created a heated controversy in China, was due to an injury and was not a political gesture.

"As everyone knows, I always want to play and be present in every match", s&# The 36-year-old eight-time Ballon d'Or winner is justified in a video published Monday evening on the Chinese social network Weibo.

"I heard that I didn't want to play for political reasons, but if that had been the case I's ;#39;would not have made the trip to Hong Kong", he stressed.

An incident that impacts the player's reputation

Immensely popular in China, the Argentine star saw his reputation damaged in the Asian country following this incident in the semi-autonomous Chinese territory.

Lionel Messi and his American club Inter Miami angered spectators when he remained on the bench on February 4 during a match against a local team in Hong Kong.

Checking in from Hong Kong 👋 pic.twitter.com/T1xOwWfFIi

— Inter Miami CF (@InterMiamiCF) February 3, 2024

The Ballon d'Or had caused an injury. Spectators had paid up to 4,800 Hong Kong dollars (570 euros) and sometimes came from very far away.

They had expressed their dissatisfaction with the absence of the player, but especially with his attitude, because he had not addressed the public to apologize.

Leo Messi denies the political nature of the affair

Lionel Messi and the co-owner of Inter Miami, ex-British player David Beckham, were booed by the crowd.

The controversy grew further when, a few days later, the Argentine star played 30 minutes of a friendly match in Japan, where several photos show him all smiles, while&#39 ;he seemed to have a closed face in Hong Kong.

Lionel Messi also stressed on Monday that since the start of his football career, his relations with China had always been "very good and very close”.

😳💥 Leo Messi sort du silence et s'explique sur son absence polémique à Hong Kong !#interview #beINSPORTS pic.twitter.com/YwtBugGBtc

— beIN SPORTS (@beinsports_FR) February 20, 2024

"I did a lot of things with China, interviews, and matches both with Barcelona and with the Argentinian selection".

Messi once again assured that he did not play due to physical problems. "It's as simple as I said before: I had inflammation in my adductor muscles and I couldn't play".

"I read and heard a lot after what happened in the match in Hong Kong, it's This is why I decided to make this video to explain what it really is, so as not to have to read false things, he added.

Two matches canceled due to controversy

Hong Kong politicians and the Chinese nationalist press had suggested that the behavior of Inter Miami and Messi could perhaps have “political motivations”.

The Hong Kong authorities have been regularly in the crosshairs of the United States and the United Kingdom since the implementation in the semi-autonomous territory of a national security law which helped to muzzle the political opposition.

Internet users have variously appreciated Messi's comments. "I'm sure that the player I always loved never had any prejudice against his fans" , wrote one of them.

"I can't understand how a footballer of such stature, the greatest of all time, can be pilloried on the internet to the point of being considered as disliking China", lamented another.

Some people, however, were not convinced by these new comments from the player. "Apparently, it's still difficult for him to apologize", noted a Weibo user.

The controversy sparked by the affair led to the cancellation by the Chinese authorities of two friendly matches of the Argentina team scheduled for March in China, against Nigeria and Ivory Coast.