Although the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner is portrayed as one of football’s “nice guys,” on occasion his ferocious temper gets the better of him.
Most people have an image of Lionel Messi in their minds, one in which he skillfully avoids multiple defenders and scores goals beyond the reach of ordinary people. He has millions of admirers worldwide because of his genuine humility and modest smile, which he wears all the time.
When he finally hangs up his boots, Messi, the footballing god, will most likely be regarded as the greatest player of all time. But you have to be a fierce competitor to make it to that level. The magician from Argentina is willing to embrace his darker side in order to achieve victory. Though he is revered by many as a hero, he has never shied away from taking the opposing side in combat.
As Argentina’s captain and unquestionable talisman, Messi bears the responsibility of a whole nation’s expectations, and that mean streak has mainly shown itself on the international scene. Although his physique and facial features aren’t the most intimidating, he never backs down from a fight.
Messi was aptly referred to as a “bad boy” by Emiliano Martinez following Argentina’s successful 2022 World Cup campaign. The superstar from Inter Miami is undoubtedly not always the perfect person that the media portrays him as, and GOAL is here to list his most startling outbursts while wearing the iconic blue and white of the Albiceleste.
Terrible debut
In a friendly match against Hungary, Messi, then just eighteen, got his first taste of playing for Argentina on the international scene. The small forward was already being tipped for greatness at Barcelona at the start of the 2005–06 season, and the entire crowd crammed into Ferenc Puskas Stadium was excited to see if he would live up to the hype.
When Messi entered the game in the 63rd minute, he appeared to be full of energy. In his first significant play, he picked up the ball just outside the center circle and ducked under his defender in a style that was all his own.
Hungary’s back row But Vilmos Vanczak took offense at being made fun of by a teenager, as he stopped Messi cold with an obvious shirt-pull. As the referee blew for the foul, Messi responded by swiping an arm back in his face, either out of instinct or sheer annoyance.
Messi couldn’t contain his tears as he made his way to the tunnel after receiving a red card after just two minutes on the field. The referee’s decision may have been a little harsh, but Argentina’s new wonderkid had lost his temper, and it would not be the last.
‘He came on to make fun of us’
At the 2016 Copa America, Argentina easily defeated Bolivia 3-0 to take first place in their group with three wins from three games. Messi was starting from the bench because the Albiceleste wanted to save their best player’s legs for the knockout stages, but he still made an appearance in the second half when his team was leading by three goals.
Messi’s deft passing and dribbling abilities quickly made an impression, and Jhasmani Campos was one of the Bolivian players penalized for attempting to stop him. Messi stood up and confronted Campos right away, taking offense at his rough challenge. In addition, the former Barcelona player shoved his opponent’s head before his teammates pulled him away.
To Messi’s dismay, the referee showed Campos a yellow card but did not punish the Bolivian winger. After the game, Campos said to GOAL, “He came on to make fun of us; a player of his talent should not be doing what he did.” “He made some inappropriate gestures to jest at my teammates, and that is unacceptable. However, it is now over. Argentina is a fantastic team, and he is the best player in the world. I hope they have a great outcome.”
‘Pretends to be nice, but really he’s the opposite’
Argentina’s World Cup experience was less than ideal, as they were eliminated in the round of 16 by eventual champions France. They needed a close victory over Nigeria in their third game after losing 3-0 to Croatia and drawing 1-1 with Iceland, so it was a blessing that they were able to advance out of their group.
Messi’s anger reached a breaking point during Argentina’s match against Croatia when, with just a goal behind, he got into a fight with Ivan Strinic halfway through the second half. After a coming together, both men were floored, but as soon as Strinic stood up, Messi violently pushed his leg away in front of the referee.
Once more, Messi got away with it. Strinic, unfazed by Croatia’s victory, also accused the Argentine star of showing disrespect to a Barcelona teammate. When questioned about his disagreement with Messi, Strinic told reporters, “He has this image where he pretends to be nice and humble, but he’s totally the opposite.” Not only did he hit me, but despite being captain, he refused to kick the ball out when his friend [Ivan] Rakitic was hurt.”
Messi versus ‘The Pitbull’
After defeating Chile in a third-place play-off, the Argentina team won bronze medals at the 2019 Copa America, but the match was marred by a nasty incident that occurred in the first half. Messi, having attempted and failed to stop an overhit pass from running out of play, went toe-to-toe with Gary ‘The Pitbull’ Medel. One of the hardest men in South American football, Medel, was able to successfully block Messi with his body, and when the Argentine realized he wouldn’t be able to reach the ball, he gave it a little shove.
Then Medel flew at Messi, starting a brawl that involved chest-barging. Before the referee hurried over to break them up and give them their marching orders, both men gave it their all. Messi had not been sent off a red card before, not since his disastrous Argentina debut. His team managed to win 2-1 without him.
Messi blasted Argentina’s semi-final loss to Brazil in front of the media after failing to appear at the medal ceremony. “There is no doubt, the whole thing is set up for Brazil,” he stated. “I refused to participate in this corruption; we shouldn’t have to endure the disdain we experienced during the Copa America.” Although we were not permitted to advance to the final, we could have continued. People were unable to enjoy the football because of corruption, referees, and other factors.”
Telling Tite to ‘shut up’
Four months later, Messi seemed to still harbor animosity toward Brazil when Argentina faced off against their bitter rivals in a friendly match. Messi’s goal in the 14th minute, which saw him tuck in a rebound after missing a penalty, ended up winning the match, but he also made headlines for his verbal altercation with Selecao head coach Tite.
Tite was seen grumbling to the referee during the first half, which finally caused Messi to retaliate. The captain of Argentina then shushed Tite and gestured with his hand as if the boss of Brazil had said too much about himself.
While Messi ultimately emerged victorious as Argentina exacted some revenge on the Selecao, Tite clarified in his press conference following the game what had been said during their contentious exchange. “I complained because he [Messi] should have been shown a yellow card and he told me to shut my mouth and I told him to shut his mouth,” he stated.
Accepting Cavani’s fight invitation
A few days later, Argentina faced Uruguay in another international friendly, and once again, Messi made headlines for his reckless actions. Throughout the game, Messi and Edinson Cavani were seen sniping at one another multiple times, most notably when the latter was fouled by Matias Vecino shortly before halftime. When they arrived at the dressing rooms, the two men were still arguing despite the fact that Uruguay was ahead courtesy of a goal from Cavani.
After Messi’s stoppage-time penalty tied the score, Argentina managed to draw 2-2, but not before a transcript of his altercation with Cavani went viral on social media.
Ole, a South American outlet, reports that Cavani questioned Messi, asking, “Do you want to fight?” The legend of Barcelona then answered, “Whenever you want.”
In an interview with TyC Sports, Cavani also discussed the altercation, saying, “It’s part of football; this is how Clasicos are.” The fact is that there were moments during the game when there was conflict, difficulties, and other typical football-related issues.”
Confronting Van Gaal
During the 2022 World Cup, Argentina’s quarterfinal matchup with the Netherlands was among the most explosive in the competition’s history.
As the game approached its last fifteen minutes, everything seemed to be going the Albiceleste’s way thanks to a goal from Nahuel Molina. Messi’s penalty kick doubled their lead, but his celebration raised more than a few eyebrows. The plugged-in forward turned to face Netherlands manager Louis van Gaal, who had stated prior to the match that he had a strategy to stop Argentina’s captain.
After that, the Netherlands pulled off an incredible comeback, sending the game into extra time and ultimately into penalties thanks to two goals from Wout Weghorst in the dying moments. After Argentina prevailed in the shootout, Messi took off for the opposing bench to vent his frustration on Van Gaal once more, yelling, “You talk too much.”
Speaking to reporters, Messi was still clearly furious, criticizing the Dutch team’s overall behavior following a match in which 18 players received yellow cards. “I feel disrespected by Van Gaal after his pre-game comments and some Dutch players spoke too much during the game,” he stated.
‘What are you looking at, fool?’
After the Netherlands match, Messi also talked with TyC Sports, but he momentarily stopped answering questions when he saw Weghorst pass him in the background. The Dutch striker was then yelled at by him, saying, “What are you looking at, fool? Come on, leave this place.”
After the heated match in the round of eight, Weghorst subsequently stated that Messi had rejected his attempts to reach an amicable agreement. After the game, he said, “I wanted to shake his [Messi’s] hand, but he smashed my hand away and didn’t want to speak with me.”
Weghorst’s remarks were supported by full footage of the incident that later surfaced, showing Messi blatantly rejecting a handshake.
After defeating Croatia in the semifinals and France in a nail-biting final, Messi and Argentina went on to win the coveted trophy. After everything had calmed down, Messi spoke out about his rivalry with the imposing striker from the Netherlands.
“I don’t like what I did. There was a lot of tension and it came out naturally,” he said. “A lot had happened with this player and two others during the match. It came out naturally.”
‘These young people have to learn’
Following the World Cup, Argentina went nearly a full year without losing until being defeated by Uruguay on November 17 in a 2026 qualifying match. The visitors won all three points at La Bombonera thanks to goals from Ronald Araujo and Darwin Nunez, but following the match, Messi publicly criticized the younger players in Marcelo Biesla’s team.
During the first half, Uruguayan midfielder Manuel Ugarte made an offensive gesture towards Argentine midfielder Rodrigo De Paul, accusing him of being Messi’s “bottle-feeder.” This led to a mass brawl between the two teams.
Messi responded, “Well, these young people have to learn,” when questioned about the incident. Although they [Uruguay] have a good national team and a group of players, they must learn respect from their elders because this Clasico has always been fierce, difficult, and respectful. Thus, they must gain some knowledge.”
In the 19th minute of play, Messi was seen grabbing Mathias Olivera’s throat and pushing his elbow into his chest after assisting his Argentine colleague. De Paul and Olivera also came dangerously close to colliding.
On the question of whether his actions were required, however, he declined to comment. “It’s normal, in this type of games, qualifiers, it’s always like this with Uruguay,” said Messi. “We knew the kind of game we would encounter; it was challenging for us to play. They have fast, agile, and physically strong individuals. We didn’t feel at ease.”
Never call Messi a coward
In their subsequent match, Argentina resumed their winning ways, defeating Brazil 1-0 at the Maracana to maintain a two-point lead over Uruguay in the CONMEBOL World Cup qualifying standings. The game was marred by crowd violence, though, and the start time was delayed by thirty minutes. Messi led his team off the field at first, but police were seen retaliating violently when fans jeered the Brazilian national anthem.
De Paul and Rodrygo were seen locked in a heated argument when the players reappeared. Messi appeared to pull the young Brazilian away from De Paul by clutching the back of his neck as he ran over to step in and intervene.
TyC Sports claims that Rodygo started the heated argument by calling Argentina “cowards” for retreating to the tunnel. Messi apparently reacted angrily to the taunt, saying, “We are the world champions, why are we cowards? Keep your mouth shut.”
After a physically taxing year that saw him leave Paris Saint-Germain to take on a new challenge at club level in the United States, the Inter Miami star is now scheduled to take a few months off. The 2024 MLS season is expected to begin in early February, but Messi will also be watching Argentina’s Copa America defense next summer. It won’t be shocking if he exhibits his darker side once more in an effort to win more hardware for his nation.