After a World Cup qualifying game between South American nations Ecuador and Argentina was played on March 30, 2022, Lionel Messi was caught in an uncomfortable situation. A pitch invader grabbed the seven-time Ballon d’Or winner by the neck and took a selfie with him. According to reports, the pitch invader is set to pay hefty fines for his actions.
Julian Alvarez got on the scoresheet for Argentina early in the game that night. The Manchester City player’s goal was canceled out by a stoppage-time equalizer by Enner Valencia, who got on the scoresheet after missing a penalty. In the end, both teams made their way to the FIFA World Cup 2022.
The incident occurred after the final whistle was blown in a 1-1 tie between Argentina and Ecuador. A fan stormed the pitch and grabbed Messi by the neck. He visibly forced the Argentine star to get into the picture. The fan was immediately moved away by the security officials as they watched Messi getting uncomfortable. However, he somehow managed to achieve his objective and captured the selfie video with Messi.
A video was shared by the fan himself, he captioned it as follows:
“You only live once and once is enough for me because I met the greatest player of all time. Mi Querido @leomessi, thank you for all the happy moments you have given me throughout the years with your beautiful football. I love you and this game. #Messi.”
View this post on Instagram
He has over 7000 followers on Instagram but very few posts. Most of his posts are related to his favorite player Messi and his latest post is about Messi and Argentina winning the FIFA World Cup 2022.
Ecuadorian fan will pay a hefty fine for grabbing Lionel Messi’s neck
Love for Lionel Messi pours down all around the world. But, some fans do not realize boundaries. The Ecuadorian crossed a line and placed the Paris Saint-Germain star in a very uncomfortable position. For doing this, he has reportedly received a hefty fine.
🎬 | An Ecuador fan took to the pitch to take a selfie with Leo Messi. pic.twitter.com/fwnkWwneXQ
— infosfcb (@infosfcb) March 30, 2022
After the incident, he was immediately withdrawn from the pitch. However, FIFA was not amused with the security lapse at the Estadio Monumental Banco Pichincha in northern Guayaquil, Ecuador. The world soccer governing body imposed a $16,000 fine on the Ecuadorian soccer federation.
According to reports, the Ecuadorian soccer federation has started the legal process against the fan. They are trying to cancel the fine imposed by FIFA on them but no further details have been provided.