Lionel Messi and Argentina made the headlines last year by winning the FIFA World Cup 2022. Messi finally ended Argentina’s 36-year-long wait for their World Cup title. However, the celebrations that followed after the World Cup victory have been questionable in nature. Soccer legend Zlatan Ibrahimovic is the latest in line who has questioned the Argentine players’ celebrations.
Zlatan on Argentina’s World Cup celebrations 👀 pic.twitter.com/aNqu3kCLlQ
— ESPN FC (@ESPNFC) January 25, 2023
While giving an interview with France Inter, Zlatan condemned some of the Argentine players for their celebrations. Zlatan said, “I’m worried about the other players of Argentina because they will not win anything else. Messi has won everything and he will be remembered. But the rest, that behaved badly, we can’t respect that. For me, it’s a sign that they will win one time and will not win anymore because you don’t win like that.‘”
Zlatan also praised Kylian Mbappe, who despite scoring a hat trick in the final, ended up on the losing side. The AC Milan forward said, “But I feel sorry for Mbappe because if you score four goals in the final (including the penalty shoot-out) and don’t win the World Cup, that is very sad. But he will win another World Cup and he has already won one, so I’m not worried about Mbappe.” Zlatan, however, didn’t forget to praise his former Barcelona teammate, Lionel Messi, for winning the World Cup.
How has FIFA reacted to Argentina’s World Cup celebrations?
Argentina’s controversial celebrations after winning the World Cup in Qatar last year haven’t gone unnoticed by FIFA. Several complaints were raised against the offensive nature of the Argentine player’s actions. As per reports from Marca, even the French finance minister, Bruno Le Maire, had called for FIFA to look into the celebrations of Argentina.
In response to insults directed at the French national team on social media following their victory over Argentina in the World Cup, French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire has condemned the actions as “undignified” and called on FIFA to investigate the matter.
— Gurbaksh Singh Chahal (@gchahal) December 23, 2022
This has finally led FIFA to launch an investigation against the Argentine players. Apparently, La Albicelestes have been accused of violating Articles 11 and 12 of the FIFA Disciplinary Code. Article 11 stands for ‘Offensive behavior and violations of the principles of fair play‘, while Article 12 stands for ‘Misconduct of players and officials’. If found guilty, the players would be made to serve a minimum of a one-match ban.
Fifa opens investigation into Argentina & goalkeeper Emi Martinez after World Cup final https://t.co/IQFEKfkUEK pic.twitter.com/gGyUzOmLRF
— Mothership.sg (@MothershipSG) January 14, 2023
There were several offensive celebrations carried out by the Argentina players against the French team, especially Kylian Mbappe. Emi Martinez was pictured carrying a baby doll with Mbappe’s face on it during Argentina’s victory parade in Buenos Aires. The Argentine team was also seen singing an offensive song targeted toward Mbappe in the dressing room moments after defeating France in the final.
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