Canelo Alvarez warns Lionel Messi after Mexico jersey video: ‘He better hope to God that he doesn’t run into me’
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The World Cup raises tensions and tempers across the globe, and not even hugely successful and talented athletes like Canelo Alvarez are immune to it.
The boxing legend sent a harsh, vaguely threatening message to Argentina star Lionel Messi on Sunday, one day after Argentina beat Alvarez's Mexico 2-0. He wasn't angry about the game specifically, but something that had happened in the locker room after. He'd seen a video that showed Messi apparently kicking a Mexico jersey and wasn't happy with what he considered to be the intentional disrespecting of his country's jersey.
Vieron a Messi limpiando el piso con nuestra playera y bandera ????
— Canelo Alvarez (@Canelo) November 28, 2022
“Did you see Messi cleaning the floor with our shirt and flag????” Alvarez tweeted, according to CNN.
Así como respeto Argentina tiene que respetar mexico!! no hablo del país(argentina) hablo de messi por su mamada que hizo. 👊🏻🔥
— Canelo Alvarez (@Canelo) November 28, 2022
“He better pray to God that I don’t find him!!” Alvarez added in another tweet. “Just like I respect Argentina, he has to respect Mexico! I’m not talking about the country as a whole, just about the bulls**t that Messi pulled.”
If you haven't seen the video and have only read Alvarez's tweets, you're probably assuming that Messi grabbed a Mexican jersey and intentionally stomped all over it, then dragged around the room with his foot while cackling evilly. But once you watch the video, the scene wasn't quite as intense as you might have believed. Messi appeared to have accidentally touched the jersey with one of his feet while he was trying to take his shoes off, and didn't seem to notice that it was a Mexico jersey.
Canelo had some strong words for Messi after seeing his locker room celebration 👀
(via @canelo, nicolasotamendi30/IG) pic.twitter.com/emRRHK1nGO— ESPN Ringside (@ESPNRingside) November 28, 2022
One of Messi's former teammates, Sergio Aguero, tweeted at Alvarez to try and clear things up.
“Mr. Canelo, don’t look for excuses or problems, surely you don’t know about football and what happens in a changing room," Aguero tweeted via CNN. "The shirts are always on the floor after games have finished due to sweat and then if you look properly, he makes the movement to remove his boot and accidentally hits it.”
Señor canelo no busques excusas o problemas , seguramente no sabes de fútbol y que pasa en un vestuario . Las camisetas siempre después que se terminan los partidos están en el piso por el sudor y después si ves bien hace el movimiento para sacarse el botín y sin querer le da . https://t.co/zfftTXH3JB
— Sergio Kun Aguero (@aguerosergiokun) November 28, 2022
Spain football legend Cesc Fabregas also came to his former Barcelona teammate's defense, pointing out that "ALL T-shirts, including the ones we use ourselves, go on the floor and are washed afterward":
Ni conoces a la persona, ni entiendes el cómo funciona un vestuario o lo que pasa después de un partido. TODAS las camisetas, incluso las que usamos nosotros mismos, se van al suelo y se lavan después. Y más cuando celebras una victoria importante. https://t.co/dWwFKXdIUS
— Cesc Fàbregas Soler (@cesc4official) November 28, 2022