Argentinian footballer Lionel Messi found himself getting a huge backlash both in Hong Kong and mainland China, after he decided to sit out a friendly game in Hong Kong.
Sharing his apology on Weibo in both Chinese and Spanish to his eight million followers, the Inter Miami player stated that he had an adductor injury which made him unable to play in the game.
“Anyone who knows me knows that I always want to play, that’s what I always want to do in any game. And especially in these games when we travel so far and people are excited to see our games. Hopefully we can come back and we can play a game in Hong Kong. And I also hope to be able to return to China as soon as possible and greet you all,” he said.
However, the apology did not sit well with netizens, with some saying that he seemed fine when he played against Japan’s Vissel Kobe following the Hong Kong match.
Some even slammed the footballer for not taking good care of his health despite fans buying high-priced tickets and travelled all the way to Hong Kong just to see him play.
