Regardless of what the Real Madrid press are writing about Lionel Messi, the truth is meaningless. His persona won’t be damaged; on the contrary; seeing the Barcelona star add a little bit of venom to his act might not be such a bad thing.
So what are the allegations? Messi waiting outside in the Santiago Bernabeu parking lot, waiting for his chance to throw a couple of words at Alvaro Arbeloa and also at Aitor Karanka, calling him Jose Mourinho’s puppet.
Jose Maria Callejon, possibly doing what Jose Mourinho told him to, talked about Messi going out of his way to show his feelings an thoughts be known about the two:
… on the pitch tempers can flare and you can understand because we all say many things and we can use insults, but when a fellow professional waits an hour after the game to dress down another professional, with his wife beside him, it shows that the good guys are not always so good, nor the bad guys so bad.
Obviously, Callejon, not really wanting to get into trouble with Real Madrid fans, refused to say anything bad about them when it came to the racist calls against Dani Alves.
I believe the club which has suffered the most racist insults in its history is Real Madrid. It happens in every ground, and in every country. It is deplorable. It is a lost war, but it happens here and in other countries. It is a subject that is worrying and we must try to bring an end to it.
So Lionel Messi is no longer the nice little boy the world views him as? Not really news. Messi has shown an edge to his personality this season that we haven’t seen before. Maybe it’s the hunger for titles that eluded him and Barcelona last season, maybe it’s becoming a father. It doesn’t matter.
Messi bickers with referee more than ever before about fouls and what not; his David Villa issue is still a cause for discussion, and the theory of whether Villa is hardly seeing any playing time has anything to do with the Argentine star is still out there. Frustrations, such as those that obviously rose during the 1-1 draw with Real Madrid, aren’t anything special.
Messi was covered by two players for the entire match if not more on other instances, a couple of times surrounded by five players even when he was without the ball. Alvaro Arbeloa was one of those players on more than one instance, and Messi kept letting Arbeloa know what he’s thinking regarding the close watch.
Some of us don’t want football, or any other sports, to try and maintain a perfect image. Rivalries create ratings and interest. Bad blood in those rivalries, giving the audience and fans someone to hate and target, as long as it doesn’t cross some violent lines, isn’t such a bad idea.
Maybe what Lionel Messi did after the Clasico draw wasn’t the classiest move in the world, but trying to turn him into some sort of brat who’s doing something no one else has ever done is a destined to failed endeavor. Those who never liked Lionel Messi now finally have a non-footballing reason to hate him for; most of the world doesn’t really mind the added flair to a usually boring personality.