According to former PSG midfielder Jerome Rothen, Lionel Messi changed his behavior after winning the World Cup with Argentina.
During the 2026 World Cup qualifier at the Maracana on November 22, Messi emphasized that Argentina were world champions when arguing with Brazilian striker Rodrygo. The young player playing for Real called the Argentine team cowards for going into the dressing room when witnessing a fight in the stands between fans of the two teams - an incident that caused the match to be delayed for nearly 30 minutes.
"Talking about the behavior of the Argentine players, they provoked others first. And the one who started it was the number one star in the team, Lionel Messi. Now, he boasts about being a world champion, but Messi has that because he has had a lot of rest since moving to PSG two years ago," Rothen told RMC Sport on November 26 when asked about the argument between Messi and his teammates with Rodrygo.
Messi argued with Rodrygo before the match between Brazil and Argentina. Photo: Reuters
At the match on November 22, police were deployed to restore order in the stands. They used batons to suppress the agitated fans. Witnessing the Argentine fans being beaten, the away team's goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez jumped into the stands to stop the police from swinging their batons.
After the match, Messi explained that he led the team to the locker room to calm down, believing that it was the best way for the team to keep their spirits up for the match. When they returned to the field, Argentina played better and won 1-0 with the only goal from centre-back Nicolas Otamendi. Messi did not leave much of an impression as he was closely followed by the home centre-backs Marquinhos and Gabriel Magalhaes, before leaving the field in the 78th minute.
"Messi used to have a nice image, but now that's changed because his real personality has emerged. Now it's hard to touch Messi. Every time he's touched, he says the same thing as Rodrygo: 'Hey, I'm the world champion'. The team reflects the image of the Argentine people. The Argentines are always like that, only satisfied when they are better than others. They should behave with more class," Rothen added.
Messi argues with Rodrygo.
Rothen has been critical of Messi on several occasions. In March, the former France midfielder said Messi often went missing in big matches. He later said Messi lacked commitment to PSG and did not show the same determination to fight for the national team as he did at Barca. Rothen even criticized Karim Benzema for praising Messi's performance at PSG.
This time, Rothen also believes that Messi does not deserve to win the 2023 Ballon d'Or. He said: "It's a shame to give that title to Messi. For me, Haaland deserves it. From August 2022 to June 2023, what criteria makes Messi more highly regarded than other players? Basically none. If we talk about titles, Messi is behind Haaland even when he wins the World Cup. Haaland has won everything with Man City and of course, you can't compare based on the World Cup, because Haaland is Norwegian."
Vinh San (according to Goal )
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