Lionel Messi broke his quiet and made an unusually candid remark after seeing the historic events that led to Argentina’s defeat by Morocco.
La Albiceleste entered the competition as one of the favourites thanks to the inclusion of Enzo Fernandez, Nicolas Otamendi, and Julian Alvarez in their lineup.
However, Soufiane Rahimi’s brace against Morocco in Saint-Etienne left them trailing 2-0.
After Giuliano Simeone pulled one back in the 68th minute, Cristian Medina of Argentina appeared to have tied the score in the 106th.
The referee added on a total of fifteen minutes, and after a major scramble, Medina was sent home in the sixteenth. Although fans were perplexed by the amount of time put on, the controversy did not end there.
The match was halted before the outcome was confirmed when Moroccan players attacked Argentina players with bottles and firecrackers.
The two teams were then informed that they would take the pitch again for three more minutes of play without any spectators.
After a startling 92 minutes after the ball entered the net, Medina’s goal was disallowed for a little offside due to a VAR review.
In the closing minutes, Morocco managed to hold on and declare victory. The 2008 Beijing Olympics gold medallist Messi was not at all pleased.
Javier Mascherano, Messi’s long-time comrade who manages the Argentina team, was incensed at the turn of events. He described the event as “the biggest circus I’ve ever seen in my life” when asked what had happened.
Argentina’s second Group B matchup is against Iraq on Saturday, when they return to action.
