CF Monterrey proved too strong for Inter Miami as they won the Champions Cup first leg 2-1. For Monterrey coach Fernando Ortiz, things were easier as he didn’t have to worry about Lionel Messi, who didn’t feature in the match due to an injury. But as per a shocking revelation, Messi had come face to face with the Monterrey coaching staff, in a literal manner!

As reported by Costa Rican journalist Kevin Jimenez, Monterrey assistant manager Nico Sánchez revealed key details regarding the harrowing fight also involving Lionel Messi & Tata Martino. He said, ” They (Messi and Martino) came to the locker room shouting and complaining to the referees, so I told some CONCACAF officials, ‘if we do that, they’ll throw us all out’ and they listened to me, and “jumped on me .” Per the Argentine coach, Messi was very angry. The Inter Miami captain even shouted, ‘Who do you think you are ‘!

Sanchez confessed that he wasn’t offended the same cannot be said for Lionel Messi. Sanchez revealed, ” He(Messi) was about to hit me, he put his fist near my face .” CF Monterrey has lodged a complaint regarding the same and it will be interesting to see how it all unfolds from here.

Lionel Messi is not one to get involved in outbursts and the incident was a surprise. It was suspected that Messi’s inability to help his side caused his frustrations to erupt. However, that might not be entirely true.

The referee-bias comments that irked Lionel Messi

Ahead of the match, Monterrey coach Ortiz claimed that he expects officials to favor Lionel Messi & Co. He said, ” Everything that surrounds Messi can lead to sporting and non-sporting decisions. I am concerned about the environment, football is business, business does not go the way of Monterrey. ” Unfortunately, the events of the match suggested otherwise.

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Inter Miami were leading 1-0. However, David Ruiz was sent off in the 65th minute and incidentally, Monterrey scored both their goals soon after. Lionel Messi, along with Luis Suarez and Jordi Alba, confronted Walter Lopez at the official match. Soon they turned to Ortiz and Nico Sanchez. Yet, Ortiz refused to open up about the incident as he stated, ” What happened is going to stay there. I am not going to give a statement regarding that.” 

Hence, it seems evident that Lionel Messi is disappointed with Fernando Ortiz’s comments rather than the result. What is your take on the story? Let us know below.

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