Lionel Messi is undoubtedly one of the greatest idols in the history of the Argentina National Team, alongside Diego Maradona and other great names who marked an era. His triumphs in the Copa América and the World Cup placed him at the pinnacle of the Albiceleste's Olympus.
However, in this final stage of his career, an unexpected controversy shakes his surroundings. The controversy arose from a revelation made by Ricardo Caruso Lombardi, who exposed alleged tensions between Messi and Claudio Chiqui Tapia, president of the AFA.
Caruso cree que se pudrió todo entre Messi y Tapia
During an appearance on Flavio Azzaro's streaming, the former coach and current candidate for legislator for the Integration and Development Movement shared details of an internal issue in which Lionel Scaloni also intervened with the intention of calming the waters.
"Scaloni was in Miami for about 10 or 12 days, and he met with Messi two or three times. It was the only time they were seen together. The idea was to ease the tension between the AFA president and Leo. Messi didn't play against Uruguay (due to alleged injury) and right after, a video of him running, kicking appeared... That was on purpose, to show he was fine," Caruso commented.
The conflict uncovered by Caruso Lombardi
According to Caruso, Messi's discontent with Tapia may have originated from the ticket prices for the match against Brazil in the Qualifiers. The captain might not have agreed with the imposed prices, especially considering the country's social context.
"Messi's anger comes from there, from the ticket prices. He didn't like what was charged for the match against Brazil. On top of that, at that moment there was the flooding in Bahía Blanca, and he said something like 'you make us look bad, you charge that while people are up to their necks in water'," Caruso recounted.
Una de las razones sería el precio de las entradas del partido con Brasil
He added: "There's a serious short circuit. Messi doesn't want to come, there's no direct dialogue with Tapia. The AFA president even had to ask a close associate of Leo for permission to try to talk to him. That's why Scaloni went to Miami, to try to bring positions closer, because there's a lot of anger on both sides."
