Argentinian forward of Inter Miami, Lionel Messi, responded to criticism regarding his absence in a friendly match against a team of Hong Kong stars.
On February 4th, the team from the U.S. won the match against the Hong Kong team. Messi remained on the bench due to injury. The absence of the star forward on the field sparked a scandal, which escalated after Messi played for 30 minutes in a friendly match against Vissel Kobe in Tokyo a few days later.
Lionel Messi on Weibo
I’ve heard people say that I didn’t want to play (in Hong Kong) for political reasons and many other reasons that are totally untrue,” Messi said in Spanish in a video with Chinese and English subtitles. “Had that been the case, I wouldn’t have even traveled to Japan or visited China as many times as I have.
It's worth noting that the organizers of the match in Hong Kong promised to refund half the ticket price to fans due to the absence of the main star of the match. Moreover, a friendly match between the teams of Nigeria and Argentina, led by Messi, was canceled amid this scandal.
