Provoked by Ronaldo, Messi immediately responded, affirming his status as champion

After being provoked by Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi took what was considered a response to the "rival". This action of the guy surprised many people.

Recently, Messi changed his profile picture on Instagram and immediately caused fierce controversy all over the internet. Specifically, the Argentine superstar decided to include an image of himself holding the 2022 World Cup Winners' Trophy in Qatar, instead of the image of receiving the 8th Ballon d'Or of his career.

This has caused a reaction with football fans in general and lovers of the pair in particular. Because many saw it as a response to Messi's provocative gesture from Cristiano Ronaldo.

The thing is that on the morning of February 2, CR7 was confirmed not to recover from his injury in time to play in the friendly match between Al Nassr and Inter Miami. Coincidentally, just before the ball rolled, Inter Miami announced that La Pulga could not play either.

The reason is because the 36-year-old striker suffered a hamstring injury against Al Hilal. However, just minutes before the match against Al Nassr, Inter Miami suddenly added his name to the list of substitutes.

Throughout the match, the cameras were constantly pointed towards Ronaldo and Messi. While CR7 sits in the VIP stands, La Pulga sits in Miami's reserve player area.

The Portuguese star was seen repeatedly getting up to celebrate excitedly. And the Argentine superstar just sat pensively watching his teammates concede goal after goal.

Significantly, the camera caught Ronaldo not only smirking as Al Nassr overwhelmed Inter Miami, but also making provocative finger gestures with Messi.

The video of this moment went viral on social media and just after that, La Pulga made the decision to change his profile picture to assert himself as the one standing on top of the world.

"That's Messi, nobody makes him tremble," "A real World Cup winner",... is what fans commented on social media, after the move was seen as a response to the Argentine superstar's provocative gesture from Cristiano Ronaldo.

According to some sources, Messi was forced to enter the pitch despite being injured due to a previously signed contract. The mandatory terms of play forced the 2022 World Cup winner to appear at a time when he didn't want to.

The 1987-born striker came on in the 83rd minute as Al Nassr led 6-0. And the difference the dad-of-3 made in more than 10 minutes on the court wasn't much. He mainly coordinated the ball in the middle of the field and could not help his team get a goal of honor.

Ignoring the above, on February 3, Inter Miami had an open training session at Hong Kong Stadium. The event attracted a large number of fans to watch. Notably, 40,000 tickets to watch the training session of Messi and his teammates were sold out, creating the biggest football fever ever in the land of Thom port.

Hours before the 36-year-old striker strode onto the training ground, thousands of fans lined up outside the stadium, chanting the 2022 World Cup champion's name. Police had to seal off the surrounding streets to ensure security and avoid traffic congestion.

The moment Messi showed up, the atmosphere in the Hong Kong stadium exploded. Fans present here warmly applauded the owner of 8 Golden Balls.

According to Goal, tickets for the friendly match between Inter Miami and Hong Kong also sold out in just one hour since going on sale in December. Many stores also make a fortune selling products such as Inter Miami jerseys and keychains featuring the striker born in 1987.

Ronaldo lost his dream of winning the ACL championship, his biological mother burst into tears in the stands Hoa Tuyết17:32:29 12/03/2024Al Nassr officially lost 1-3 to Al Ain in the penalty shootout in the quarter-final second leg of the AFC Champions League. Thus, Ronaldo and his teammates were eliminated from the Asian Cup, ending their dream of winning the championship.