Lionel Messi facing calls to be BANNED from Mexico as ‘persona non grata’
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Lionel Messi faces calls to be BANNED from Mexico as a ‘persona non grata’ amid a dispute over him kicking a Mexico shirt in the dressing room, as a furious parliamentarian accuses the Argentine star of ‘contempt’ and ‘lack of respect’
An irate Mexican parliamentarian has called for Lionel Messi to be expelled from his country and labeled ‘persona non grata’ for showing ‘disrespect’ after Argentina played Mexico in the World Cup.
María Clemente García, a Mexican deputy, made her incredible pitch to have Messi officially deemed unwelcome on Mexican soil earlier this week.
Messi, who scored in a 2-0 win over Mexico in the group stage, caused a stir when a locker room video surfaced showing the Paris Saint-Germain star kicking a Mexican shirt or flag that was scattered on the floor.
Video of the interior of Argentina’s locker room has caused outrage to a Mexican minister
Messi (right) has been accused of disrespecting Mexico by kicking his shirt in the images.
Boxer Canelo Álvarez got involved, before apologizing, but now García has intervened and wants sanctions taken.
“(Messi) showed not only an obvious contempt, but also a lack of respect towards the colors that allude to those who make up our national flag, which from a sovereign perspective can be considered conduct constituting an affront to our national identity, In addition to being contrary to the fundamental principle of ‘fair play’, the support for fair competitiveness that FIFA defends’, he said in his motion.
He then went on to present his argument for a point of agreement with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (SRE) that would make Messi a ‘persona non grata’, no longer welcome, in Mexico.
Minister María Clemente García wants Messi to be ‘persona non grata’ in Mexico
Several players rushed to Messi’s defense once the video surfaced, including friends and former teammates Cesc Fabregas and Sergio Agüero, as well as Mexico internationals Miguel Layun and Andrés Guadrado.
While Canelo was one of Messi’s earliest and most prominent critics, the Mexican fighter has since retracted his comments and apologized.
His apology read: ‘These last few days I was carried away by the passion and love I feel for my country and made inappropriate comments for which I want to apologize to Messi and the people of Argentina.
‘Every day we learn something new and this time it was my turn.
Saúl ‘Canelo’ Álvarez apologized to Messi for his comments in a recent Twitter row
“I wish both teams much success in their matches today and here we will continue to support Mexico until the end.”
Messi has remained silent amid the furore surrounding the video in question, but Agüero was quick to chime in, saying: ‘Mr. Canelo, don’t look for excuses or problems, surely you don’t know about football and what happens in a locker room.
The supposed ‘victim’ of Messi’s disrespect, Guadrado, got involved, calling the argument ‘nonsense’ and defending the Argentine captain and criticizing Canelo’s actions.
Even Javier Hernández, Mexico’s all-time top scorer, had his say, jokingly vowing to defend Agüero with his life.