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Fifa president 'disappointed' with Lionel Messi for skipping Indonesia match? Here's the truth
A TikTok video has been shared at least 2.5 million times since it was posted on June 16
AFP file photo
A video viewed millions of times on social media claims to show Fifa president Gianni Infantino "rebuking" superstar Lionel Messi for not taking part in Argentina's friendly with Indonesia in Jakarta last June 19.
"FIFA REBUKES MESSI!! FIFA President (Gianni Infantino) Reprimands Lionel Messi for Not Playing in Indonesia," says Indonesian-language text in a TikTok video, which has been viewed at least 2.5 million times since it was posted on June 16, 2023.
The first 18 seconds of the video show Fifa president Gianni Infantino speaking at a press conference, seemingly saying in English: "I am disappointed with Messi because he didn't play in Indonesia. I see, Indonesians really idolise Lionel Messi. But it's a shame Messi really doesn't appreciate them."
Subtitles that appear on the screen translate the speech into Indonesian.
The sequence is followed by an Indonesian-language voice-over that translates to English as: "Lionel Messi receives a reprimand from the FIFA president after he didn't join the team in Indonesia. It's been confirmed that Lionel Messi would not play in Indonesia along with two other senior members of the Argentina team."
The truth
However, this is not true. The video actually shows Infantino talking about the criticism directed at World Cup hosts Qatar during the tournament in the Gulf state on November 19, 2022.
The video circulated after reports that Messi would skip the friendly between Argentina — the 2022 World Cup champions — and Indonesia on June 19 to the disappointment of his Indonesian fans.
After days of speculation about his participation, Messi was not present for the international friendly in Jakarta, as reported by AFP.
In a press conference held a day before the Indonesia friendly, Argentine head coach Lionel Scaloni said the football star skipped the match in Jakarta because he needed to rest.
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