After all these years, Lionel Messi is firing back at those who’ve been taking pot shots at him from afar.
Messi on Sunday in an expletive-laden interview with Argentinian broadcaster TyC Sports blasted critics of he and his Argentina teammates. Argentina hasn’t won a major tournament since 1993, and Messi has been trying since 2005 to end his country’s title drought. Detractors say Messi doesn’t play as well for Argentina as he does for his club, FC Barcelona, and some even charge him with not caring about his national team.
Messi, 28, normally doesn’t answer such accusations, but he now has chosen to defend himself forcefully.
“I get annoyed when they tell us put in more effort, you don’t feel the shirt,” Messi told TyC Sports, according to FourFourTwo. “We were lucky enough to get to the final of the World Cup (in 2014) and the Copa America (in 2015), and it seems like we didn’t do anything.
“We got to two finals, for f***’s sake. We didn’t win, what can you do, but we got to the final, we didn’t lose in the last 16.
“Football is not just about having balls. We had bad times in the national team for what we experienced.
“We lost the final of the World Cup against Germany, who have great players, and we had great chances to win it. With Chile it was the same and we lost on penalties.”
Messi moved to Spain with his family in 2001 at age 13. Critics use his decision not to sing Argentina’s national anthem on the field before games as evidence of his disconnect with his homeland.
“I get annoyed by the people who attack you without thinking,” Messi continued. “I won’t sing the national anthem on purpose. I don’t need to sing it to feel it. Every person feels it in their own way.”
In conclusion, don’t take cheap shots at Lionel Messi. He’ll probably respond by scoring points of his own.
Thumbnail photo via Twitter/@UOLEsporte
