Messi Addresses Hong Kong No-Show Incident: Clarifies Injury as Cause

Messi: “An absence was due to the injury … no political reason.”

Lionel Messi, praised as the best footballer of his generation, who plays for Inter Miami, recently addressed the Hong Kong no-show incident directly.

On the 19th, Messi posted an explanatory video on his Weibo account, a Chinese social media platform. Messi said, “I have read and heard a lot of stories after the Hong Kong match,” and opened the video by saying, “I wanted to tell the true story through this video so that no one would continue to encounter false stories.” As previously explained, he said, “I was unable to participate in the match due to muscle inflammation,” and “I felt discomfort, and there was a risk of it worsening.” He added, “As you all know, I always want to participate in every match,” and “I have heard that I do not want to play for political and many other reasons, but this is not true. If it were, I would not have visited Japan or China so often.”

It appears that Messi himself stepped forward to explain as local fans’ anger over the no-show incident grew, and even the friendly match scheduled for next month was canceled.

Finally, Messi said, “I have had a very close and special relationship with China. I have experienced interviews, games, and events in China,” and left a message saying, “I wish all of you in China, whom I have a special affection for, good luck and I look forward to meeting you soon.”

In response, Hong Kong people showed a forgiving attitude, saying, “There is sincerity in his explanation,” and “Let’s welcome him, who has a friendly attitude towards China.” In contrast, some still showed negative reactions, saying, “I’m not sure if his injury was that severe,” and “Seeing him make a prepared statement, I doubt if he had the will to play.”

Messi did not play in a friendly match against the Hong Kong All-Star team held in Hong Kong on the 4th. Tens of thousands of fans who came to the stadium to see Messi exploded in boos and anger, calling it a “scam.” Subsequently, Messi made a brief substitute appearance in a match in Japan, causing even greater backlash locally.

On the 6th, Messi said, “I really wanted to play, but I was told it was difficult (due to injury),” and “Such cases occur frequently in the football world.” However, despite his explanation, the suspicion has grown uncontrollably. In particular, the Chinese media has raised suspicions that another country intervened to prevent Messi from playing in the Hong Kong match or even claimed that John Lee, the Hong Kong Chief Administrator, was subject to sanctions from China, which is why Messi, who is part of the American team, did not play in the Hong Kong match.