Not only that, the Chief Executive of the Hong Kong SAR even solemnly guaranteed that he would assist the organizers in securing a financial subsidy of about HK$16 million and venue funding, and it was under such a month-long culmination of the warm-up that the tickets were sold out in an instant! Some fans even came from as far away as Xinjiang just to see the "Ballon d'Or" in action. This series of initiatives by the Chief Executive of the Hong Kong SAR aims to satisfy the people of Hong Kong, the audience and the "King" himself. Unfortunately, however, from the moment the Miami Internationals and Messi arrived in Hong Kong, there was a discordant atmosphere in the air - MoMo!
Fok disclosed on social media that all members of the Miami International team landed in Hong Kong, and in the face of a grand welcoming ceremony, they left in a hurry and quickly boarded public transportation, paying no attention to the invitation of the host of the ceremony. Many of the on-site guests felt embarrassed as a result. Fok described the beginning of the welcoming ceremony as "dignity being trampled on mercilessly".
It was immediately followed by the Hong Kong showpiece. Messi sat quietly on a bench for 90 minutes without even taking off his jacket. Fok revealed that the director of the Hong Kong Cultural and Tourism Bureau negotiated with the organizers during the game, hoping that Messi could play three times, but were rejected by the coaching staff of the Miami International team, which is contrary to the negotiation between the Hong Kong SAR Government and the organizers of the "Messi need to play for at least 45 minutes unless there is a safety or health problem".
If Messi's non-appearance is a disrespect to the fans, then the behavior after the match can be called "humiliating". What happened to the original agreement that Messi, as captain, should speak and receive the award? Messi not only refused to speak, refused to receive the award, and even bypassed the crowd, refused to shake hands with the Hong Kong Chief Executive. This is the same as the welcome ceremony at the airport. As Fok Kai-kong said, if a player is injured and cannot play, the fans may understand. But in the face of thousands of fans and the Hong Kong Chief Executive, they did not even show the most basic respect. It should be realized that this is a public exhibition match. If they cannot play, can they even take down their pants at will?
Miami International claimed that "Messi was injured and could not play". But the whole story was reversed from the moment Messi arrived in Japan. The first reversal came from none other than Messi himself. In a press conference before the friendly match in Japan, he personally admitted that "he is not injured, he just feels sick". Messi said he felt a problem with his adductor muscle and underwent an MRI. The results showed that he was not injured, but he refused to appear in the Hong Kong leg.
This statement is obviously "fooling", followed by the so-called "hand of God". Messi posted a "letter of explanation" on Chinese social media, saying that he was unable to participate in the Hong Kong friendly due to pain from a swollen groin, and that he looked forward to returning one day to play for the Hong Kong fans! Interestingly, Messi's Chinese social media account has an IP address in Sichuan, which is obviously not written by him.
Then, on February 7, before the exhibition match in Tokyo, Japan, all Chinese soccer fans were watching to see if Messi would play. As it turned out, Messi not only came on as a substitute, he played 30 minutes! Unlike in Hong Kong, Messi was "alive and kicking" in the Japan match, and two days ago he could not even tell he was injured.
Even the Japanese media revealed that Messi was passing, running and shooting with great ease and laughing with his teammates during the full team training before the match. This completely angered the HKSAR government. Fok once again posted a message asking Messi to explain and apologize to the people of Hong Kong!
Nowadays, whether Messi is injured or not has become irrelevant. In all of his trips to Asia, he has only missed the Hong Kong leg in six matches, which is baffling! If he is really injured, there should be some basic respect and etiquette since he came to Asia to play a friendly match. After all, many fans traveled thousands of miles and spent a lot of money to see him. Throughout the trip to Hong Kong, Messi not only "black face", but also remain silent, has nothing to do with whether or not the injury. As a result, Messi was completely banned from China less than 24 hours after the Japan match.
According to a joint report by soccer media personality Xu Yi and Northwestern Watch reporter Xu Zexin, the Argentina men's national soccer team's trip to China, which was scheduled to take place in March 2024, has essentially been announced as canceled! In addition, Xu Zexin also revealed that in the current situation, many brands related to Argentina's China trip have canceled their contracts, and information about the official announcement will be released.
Subsequently, the Chinese Football Association (CFA) also took action. According to Northwest reporter Xu Zexin, the CFA announced the suspension of cooperation with the Argentine FA, including the Argentine national team. This news reveals two things: firstly, the Argentinean FA is behind Messi's absence from Hong Kong; secondly, the Argentinean national team has also decided to cancel their trip to China in March! What's more, Xu Zexin also revealed that all news about Messi has been deleted from the CFA's official webpage, and "King" Messi has been completely blocked!
As I said initially, Messi's problems now go beyond the sport itself. In fact, many of them have risen to the level of China vs. the state. But it's safe to assume that since the 36-year-old Messi has chosen to be "cold and pro-Japanese," he's got more than one thing going for him in terms of advice. In the next few days, I'll reveal them one by one.
