Lionel Messi has been suspended for four international games by the CONMEBOL and FIFA following his rant towards the official during Argentina’s 1-0 victory over Chile.
The Barcelona forward netted the only goal of the game in a repeat of the last two Copa America finals but was noticeably unhappy at some of the decisions that went against his nation and made his feelings clear towards the linesman in the first- half.
He was caught on camera verbally abusing the assistant referee Dewson Silva which continued at the end of the game as he made a point of not shaking the official’s hand and his actions throughout have landed him in trouble with the governing bodies.
A statement via the Daily Mirror read: “The FIFA Disciplinary Committee, pursuant to articles 77 a) and 108 of the FIFA Disciplinary Code (CDF), took the following decision regarding the case of Argentine footballer Lionel Messi after an incident that occurred during the qualifying match of The FIFA World Cup Russia 2018 played between Argentina and Chile on March 23, 2017.
“Footballer Lionel Messi is considered guilty of having violated art. 57 of the CDF when pronouncing injurious words against an assistant referee.”
COMMENTS