South Africa star Olwethu Makhanya has finally opened up about his viral encounter with eight-time Ballon d'Or winner Lionel Messi. Here's a look!
The Story
By all metrics, Olwethu Makhanya has already secured one of the biggest highlights of his career, featuring in a match against eight-time Ballon d'Or winner Lionel Messi.
The 20-year-old South African defender came on as a substitute for Philadelphia Union during their recent MLS clash against Inter Miami.
Read: Grabbing by the nose! When famous coaches lose their cool
Promoted to first-team football by fellow South African manager Bradley Carnell, Makhanya has seized his opportunity, featuring in five of a possible six MLS games so far.
During Philadelphia's 2-1 defeat to Inter Miami, Makhanya was introduced late in the game, and just moments later, he found himself in a brief tussle with Messi.
A video of the incident, where Makhanya is seen holding his own against a frustrated Messi, has gone viral in South African media. Many fans have expressed pride in seeing the eThekwini-born star stand his ground against arguably the greatest footballer of all time.
Makhanya has now broken his silence on the moment.
View this post on Instagram
Speaking on The One Team We Agree On podcast, a platform dedicated to Philadelphia Union news, he explained, "I mean, obviously, he was, like, backing off towards me and he wasn't aware of that.
"So I was just, like, trying to make sure he doesn't step on me. So I just, you know, pushed him a little bit.
"I guess he didn't like that. And then he started with the elbow and everything. And the linesman was just there, but, you know, he didn't say anything.
"So, yeah, that's how it went down."