Messi: These young players need to learn respect

After an incident that enraged Lionel Messi, he revealed that "these young players need to learn respect." 

During his side's 2-0 defeat to Uruguay in a 2026 FIFA World Cup CONMEBOL qualifier, the eight-time Ballon d'Or winner was seen putting his arm around the throat of opposition defender Mathias Olivera.  

Read: Saudi star opens up on Ronaldo interaction after heated altercation  

Olivera and Argentina's Rodrigo de Paul were involved in a verbal altercation, but things escalated when Messi charged towards the Uruguay defender, putting his arm against the opposing player's chest. 

The former Barcelona star opened up about the incident after the game. 

"I prefer not to say what I think about some gestures. But these young people have to learn to respect from their elders," the 2022 FIFA World Cup winner said as per the Mirror. 

While the Inter Miami forward could be considered lucky to have remained on the field, he was unable to rescue his side as goals by Ronald Araujo and Darwin Nunez saw the Uruguayans trot on to their second consecutive qualifying win to position themselves in second place, two points behind Argentina.  

"You can see (Marcelo) Bielsa's hand on the way Uruguay is playing. In all the national teams or clubs, including Argentina, his style was very recognizable. And he has a good generation of players [in Uruguay]. 

"They are an intense team and it was difficult for us to play our game. They have physical and fast players in the midfield. We never feel comfortable and we didn't find a way to posses the ball for a long period of time. So the game was played on a fast pace and we fall for that style, which isn't the best for us." 

Argentina's next challenge comes in the form of a qualifier against rivals Brazil, who suffered a 2-1 loss to Colombia, on Wednesday 22 November. 

The 36-year-old admitted that while his side is not unbeatable, they feel supported by their country.  

"There are times when you have to give credit to your rival. We cannot think that because we are world champions we will never lose. We are not unbeatable, I said it and I will continue to say it. The players feel backed by the support of the people, I hope it will always be like that."

Read: Messi furious in Argentina loss, Brazil stunned by Diaz double 

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