Netherlands vs. Messi: How Lionel Messi’s Anger Almost Caused Chaos

Lionel Messi may be known as the coolest and calmest man in football but there is a side of him no one wants to see; his angry side, hence don’t make Lionel Messi angry cause you won’t like him when he is angry, and for one, the Netherlands game did a lot to bring out that side of him.

According to reports, a provocation between the 7 time Ballon D’or winner and Netherlands’ Wout Weghorst almost got into a heated war of words when the Dutch player requested for a jersey swap with the Argentina captain.

The report comes courtesy of reporter, Esteban Edul who was at the spot engaging in an interview with Messi before he got sight of the Netherlands player.

The game against the Dutch team was already a heated debacle, almost like a derby match with emotions rife between both sets of players, and Weghorst may have entered the bad books of the Argentine when he came off the bench to net a brace to force the game into extra time.

It was the penalty shootout that proved the decider on the night as Messi and Argentina emerged victorious over the Netherlands to secure a Semi-final place against Croatia.

As per the report, Lionel Messi was said to have taken a vicious jab at referee Antonio Mateu Lahoz following Argentina’s hard-fought victory, indicating that the captain was not entirely thrilled despite the victory.

After handing out a staggering 18 cards during the game, including a red card for Netherlands full-back Denzel Dumfries, Lahoz was severely criticized.

In a heated exchange with TyC Sports, Messi referred to Weghorst, a 30-year-old Burnley loanee, as “silly” for staring at him.

Edul has now provided a first-person description of what transpired while he was with Messi, claiming that the PSG forward was more enraged as a result of the shootout.

“After the game, they were all bickering in the locker room, not just Messi,” he told Argentine newspaper Ole.

“[Virgil] Van Dijk was falling out with [Nicolas] Otamendi. It looked like a Lanus-Banfield or a Newel’s-Central, but it had more mouth because they were world stars.

“Most of Messi’s anger was about the penalty shootout, when the Dutch bothered the Argentines. The 19 [Weghorst] was waiting in the tunnel.”

Edul claims that Weghorst and Messi had a verbal altercation before his interview with the former Barcelona player.

Additionally, he had to step in and halt Messi lest the agitated Argentina forward say something he might later regret.

When Weghorst allegedly approached Messi to ask for his shirt, according to Edul, the seven-time Ballon d’Or winner allegedly began to “warm up” for the war of words.

Weghorst, who is on loan at the Turkish team Besiktas, was allegedly “insulted” by Messi while Weghorst “didn’t understand”.

“He [Weghorst] approached Messi and asked him for his shirt. It was from there that Leo started to warm up,” Edul explained.

“The Dutch player didn’t understand, he stopped and Messi insulted him. He insulted him much more before the start of the interview during which he was a little calmer.