Football News : Messi Spat On and Neymar Hit by Popcorn, Tchouaméni Calls on Players to Rebel, Italian Cigarettes and Pirlo
Andrea Pirlo, now in charge of Sampdoria, previously managed Fatih Karagümrük for a season. Colin Kazim-Richards, a former Toulouse player, shared some peculiar details about the Italian coach’s methods, particularly regarding cigarettes. « We had a lot of Italians who smoked. In Turkey, it depends on the coach whether you can or not. However, last year with Andrea Pirlo, they were allowed to smoke cigarettes, and they kept smoking before matches. It’s a completely different culture, » stated the Turkish former striker for the Filthy Fellas podcast.
Aurélien Tchouaméni voiced his frustration about the packed football schedule, which includes league matches, Champions League, national team qualifiers, and international tournaments. « Obviously, we play too many matches; it’s no surprise to anyone. Today, it’s rare to have a week with only one match. This leads to injuries. It’s up to the governing bodies and the players to stand up against this. It seems like the situation won’t improve with more competitions. We need to take action. When it’s too much, it becomes a problem, » said the Real Madrid midfielder.
He added, « We’re not necessarily asked for our opinion. Over the seasons, we’ve seen an increasing number of matches. There’s a problem with that. I saw a statistic: I was among the players who played the most matches in Europe during a period when I was injured. When I say that players need to stand up and make a decision collectively, it’s because if we all disagree with playing so many matches, we need to come together and make a decision to be heard. If everyone speaks individually, there’s no strength. »
In Argentina-Paraguay World Cup 2026 qualifying match, Lionel Messi entered the game in the early second half. It’s alleged that Paraguayan player Antonio Sanabria spat at Messi. Messi’s response was, « In the locker room, they told me someone spat at me, but the truth is I don’t even know who that guy is. I didn’t see anything, but I don’t want to give importance to this thing, or else it will make him famous, so it’s better to leave it at that. » In return, Sanabria denied the accusation, saying, « What’s happening is that on the footage, you only see it from behind, and it looks like I’m spitting at him. But that’s not true. »
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Neymar, during a Brazil-Venezuela match, became the target of a popcorn throw from a spectator at the end of the game. He reacted strongly to this incident and was restrained by his teammates. Neymar said, « It’s very sad; I didn’t come here on vacation; I came to do what I love the most, which is to play football and represent my country. This supporter threw… I didn’t even see what it was; I only saw it when it hit me. I got very nervous; I condemn this kind of behavior; you shouldn’t do it. »
https://twitter.com/ActuFoot_/status/1712719644174475525