Known for letting his skills speak on the pitch rather than engaging in aggressive tactics or trash talk, Messi, 37, rarely loses his cool. ..Continue Reading
However, during Argentina’s Group C match against Poland at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, one player managed to upset him enough for Messi to admit later that he “ignored him” out of anger.
This might come as a surprise, considering Argentina’s traditional football rivals are nations like Brazil, Mexico, England, and the Netherlands.
Yet, it was Polish striker Robert Lewandowski who got under Messi’s skin.
During the game, Lewandowski attempted to dispossess Messi and extended a friendly hand afterward, but Messi declined the gesture and walked away.
Messi later revealed that his frustration stemmed from comments made by Lewandowski after the 2021 Ballon d’Or ceremony, where Messi won the award.
Lewandowski, who had an extraordinary 2020/21 season, finishing second for the prestigious honor after netting 40 Bundesliga goals in just 29 matches and breaking Gerd Müller’s record for goals in a calendar year, had shared remarks that “bothered” Messi.
Despite the tension, Messi had publicly praised Lewandowski during his Ballon d’Or acceptance speech, even suggesting that the Polish striker deserved to win the award in 2020, the year it was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
But, Lewandowski described Messi’s statement as “empty words”.
“I would like it [Messi’s 2020 Ballon d’Or statement] to be a sincere and courteous statement from a great player and not just an empty words,” Lewandowski told Kanale Sportowym via Marca in 2021.
A year later, the Argentinian gave his thoughts and revealed how he deliberately dribbled at Lewandowski during the World Cup.
“Lewandowski’s statement in 2021 bothered me because when I won the Ballon d’Or, I said what I really felt,” Messi told ESPN in December 2022.
“I ignored him during the game because it was him, and I was angry and thought he shouldn’t have said what he said. I was very angry. Was I deliberately dribbling because it was him? Yes.”
“After that, we met and talked and agreed that it was a misunderstanding,” Messi added. “He was upset because what he said didn’t match what was reported.
“Then he went to Barcelona, and we talked about many things about the club, the city and everything.”
