Messi was kicked by an opponent

The opening match of the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup between Inter Miami and Al Ahly at the Hard Rock Stadium became the center of attention when Lionel Messi was targeted by the opponent.

Right from the 10th minute, Messi – the owner of 8 Golden Balls – received a rough tackle from Al Ahly defender Ahmed Nabil Koka.

The player rushed in with a high tackle, causing Messi to fall to the ground and clutch his stomach, forcing the match to be paused for medical intervention.

Referee Alireza Faghani, with the help of VAR, decided to show Koka a yellow card, despite many believing the foul deserved a red card. Inter Miami coach Javier Mascherano reacted angrily from the sidelines, but the decision was not overturned.

Not stopping there, towards the end of the first half, Al Ahly players continued to target Messi with a dangerous tackle from behind. This time, Messi fell and needed help to leave the field temporarily, while the audience at Hard Rock booed loudly.

VAR was used again, but the referee only verbally warned the Al Ahly player, angering many Inter Miami fans present at the stadium.

According to statistics from The Guardian , Messi was fouled a total of 7 times in the match, the highest on the pitch, showing Al Ahly's "fiery" defensive tactics to neutralize him.

The Egyptian team always sends at least two people to mark Messi when the Argentine superstar has the ball, in order to neutralize Inter Miami's main striker.

This tactic was somewhat effective, as Messi had a difficult match and ended in a 0-0 draw. However, Leo still made people admire many times with many extraordinary moves and if he had been luckier, he would have scored this match.

Source: https://znews.vn/messi-bi-doi-thu-dap-vao-nguoi-post1560965.html